One Step Further: The Start of the Fire
by SnaketailOfWinterclan
Summary: Sequel to One Step Further. Leafclan has found the clans and were welcomed. However, the leaders of the original four clans have decided that there isn't room for a clan the size of Leafclan around the lake so the newer cats have to find a way around this. The beginning of the story can be found here: /s/9838179/1/One-Step-Further
1. Chapter 1

Five days later, Darkstar was surprised by Ashfoot walking into Leafclan's camp with five unfamiliar cats; a mottled gray tom, a small white she-cat, a dark gray tom, a brown tom with one black ear, and a tortoiseshell she-cat with a white mark on her forehead.

"We came to offer you an escort to the Island for the Gathering tonight." Ashfoot announced, somewhat formally.

"Um, thanks."

"Onestar sent me to ask that you come to Windclan's camp so that you can follow our group there."

"Very well." Darkstar lifted his tail to summon his clan and they followed Ashfoot and her patrol through the hills to a dip well sheltered by gorse and heather. Before they entered, the mottled gray tomcat ran ahead through a small tunnel, the rest of the crowd following more slowly.

The camp was surprisingly open after the tightness of the tunnel that led to it. Onestar and the mottled tom were standing in the center of camp and four full-grown cats were seated in a cluster to the right. Whiskerpaw was watching from the other side of camp, right next to what seemed to be an old badger set. At least one pair of eyes looked out through the shadows inside. There was also a large boulder on the opposite side of camp but it seemed unoccupied.

"Welcome to Windclan's camp." Onestar greeted Darkstar in a friendly voice. Then he saw Cloudpaw and Pebblepaw.

"Foxes!" He yowled in alarm, his fur bristling. Leafclan converged until both fox kits were safe, wrapped in layers of cats.

"They are my _clanmates_." Darkstar snarled, his fur bristling in turn.

"You keep company with _foxes_?"

"Yes." Onestar swallowed and visibly collected himself.

"Can you promise that my cats will be safe from them? Our kittens?"

"Easily. These foxes have never tasted cat, they eat the same prey as all of us."

"Okay." Onestar said with a nod. "Then I'll do my best to accept them as clan warriors."

"Good."

"Until sun-down, Leafclan can share our camp. The hunting patrols should be back soon with prey."

"With your permission, we could catch our own."

"I'm sure my hunting patrols will be able to catch enough." Darkstar understood that to mean that Onestar didn't want unfamiliar cats hunting his land.

"Alright, thank you."

"Our nursery is over there if your queens want a place to rest." Onestar gestured to what looked to Darkstar like just another section of the gorse barrier. Onestar must have noticed his confusion because he continued to explain. "There's a good-sized den inside that gorse bush, padded with moss."

Darkstar turned to look at Tornadoclaw where she was standing between Embershade and Moonleap, each of them holding a kit, and Silverfire behind her holding the last. Tornadoclaw set Cliffkit down to answer.

"I'd like that. Thank you." She and the three holding her kits found and entered the den and only Embershade came back out.

"Their elders can share our den." A dark gray tabby tom rasped, padding out of the badger set. Another tabby tom with a ripped ear stood behind him but didn't say anything. Hazelwood and Frostpelt each thanked him as they followed the two Windclan elders into their den.

"And I wouldn't mind the chance to talk with your medicine cat." The mottled tom spoke up. Snaketail stepped forward, gesturing with her tail for Nightpaw to follow her. "My name is Kestrelflight, medicine cat of Windclan." The tomcat continued, turning to lead Leafclan's medicine cats to the boulder.

"I'm afraid we have no dens for the warriors or apprentices but feel free to relax wherever there's room."

"Thanks for the hospitality" Darkstar responded, sitting down with Brighttalon beside him. Slowly the rest of Leafclan also relaxed.

At sunset, Darkstar retrieved his clanmates and Onestar and his patrol led them out of camp and to the lake. From there they followed the beach until they came to a fallen tree. Windclan crossed to the Island first, closely followed by Leafclan. The clearing in the center of the island was already fairly crowded and three cats stood in the branches of an oak tree.

"You're late, Onestar." A large white tom with black paws growled.

"I'm here now, Blackstar." Onestar responded in kind as he climbed to a branch just below a blue-gray she-cat that Darkstar recognized from his leadership ceremony as Mistystar

"Who are your guests, Onestar?" The final leader, Firestar, asked, looking down at Leafclan. Onestar flicked his ears at Darkstar to suggest he answer.

"I am Darkstar of Leafclan. I've come to ask for a home for me and my clanmates."

"We need to discuss this among ourselves and our medicine cats." Mistystar decided. The other leaders nodded in agreement and leapt from the tree to speak with a group of four cats sitting near the base of the tree. Another group of four that was sitting on the far side of the tree joined the leaders and medicine cats. After talking for a while, the leaders returned to the tree and Blackstar stepped forward to speak.

"We've decided that each clan will accept some of your clanmates. We will allow each of you to choose which clan you want to join."

Darkstar stepped forward to better address all the gathered cats.

"Would any of you willingly leave your family and friends to live among strangers? Why would you expect us to do so? We look for a single home for all of us, not to be separated among your camps. Is there room for another clan's territory here or should we continue to journey?"

There was utter silence for a moment as every cat stared at Darkstar. Then Mistystar stood.

"There is extra land between my territory and Windclan's, but not enough to feed a clan the size of yours."

"We also have unclaimed land between Shadowclan's and Thunderclan." Firestar added. "But there is the same problem that it would not hold all of Leafclan."

Snaketail walked forward to speak more closely with Darkstar.

"Long before we left our first territory, Nightpaw had a vision-type dream. She had been following a bright leaf that brought her to this island before breaking in half in the lake. Leafclan is larger than most of the other clans. I don't want to leave any of our friends but we could probably manage as two clans instead of one." She murmured.

"Come to think of it, I also saw a leaf split in half weirdly before we left. I think that was just after Willowfire got bit by that fox." Darkstar responded softly. Then he lifted his head to speak to the other leaders again.

"I need to speak to my clan." He stated before immediately turning around to view his clanmates. They all crowded forward a little closer so he could speak to them directly. Brighttalon, Shiningheart, Sandpelt, Silverfire, and Snaketail were closest to Darkstar, with Wildear, Nightpaw, Spruceheart, Hazelwood, and Shadowlion just behind them.

"Right, what do you all think? Would we be able to manage as two clans instead of one?"

"I don't like it." Frostpelt spoke up from her seat behind Spruceheart and Hazelwood. "But I don't see what other choice there is."

"I could lead the other clan." Shiningheart commented.

"So could I." Silverfire challenged mildly.

"And Nightsh- paw and I could be a medicine cat for each clan." Snaketail added, ignoring Shiningheart and Silverfire's dispute.

"Alright, I guess we're doing this. We can figure out specifics later." Darkstar turned again towards the leaders. "Leafclan will split into two clans. Both small enough to be supported by the territories available, but still strong enough to defend ourselves. This way no families need be separated and everyone on this island can feel comfortable that their sharing their dens with cats that they know they can trust."

"And what about the foxes that I see rubbing pelts with your cats." Blackstar growled. "Shadowclan doesn't share borders with foxes."

"They are in my clan and as such will be treated with as much respect as any of their clanmates." Darkstar responded coldly.

"As long as they stay within their borders I see no problem with them." Firestar commented.

"Yeah, well, you wouldn't, would you, Firestar?" Blackstar hissed.

"Enough you two." Mistystar yowled. "I'm sure that Darkstar's warriors will obey the warrior code."

"Can foxes be considered warriors?" Blackstar questioned.

"As soon as they finish their training they will be." Darkstar stated firmly.

"Now that that's settled, can we commence with the Gathering?" Onestar asked impatiently. "Windclan has been doing well this past moon. Prey has been running this leaf-fall but not too quickly for my warriors."

"Thunderclan too is well-fed this leaf-fall. And our warriors are strong after a kind Greenleaf."

"Shadowclan is well."

"Riverclan is content. Duskfur has moved into the nursery." There were noises of congratulation from all the original clans. Then they started to spread out, cats from different clans seeking each other out to converse.

"Hey Snaketail, Nightpaw!" Kestrelflight called. "Come meet the others.

"This is Jayfeather of Thunderclan," he began, gesturing to a gray tabby tomcat with pale blue eyes. "Littlecloud of Shadowclan." A small tabby tom nodded in a friendly way. "And Mothwing and Willowshine of Riverclan." Mothwing was a golden she-cat with long fur and Willowshine was a gray tabby she-cat.

"It's nice to meet you all. I'm Snaketail. And this is my apprentice, Nightpaw." Snaketail responded, feeling somewhat timid.

"It's nice to meet you too." Littlecloud responded, a hint of a wheeze in his voice.

"What's it like to have foxes in your clan?" Willowshine asked, curious rather than hostile.

"They aren't too different from any of our other apprentices. A little better at hunting than most of us." Snaketail shot Nightpaw a sharp glance. "They have longer legs than their denmates so they can pounce from further away and still catch something. And rogues are less willing to take on our patrols when they include either Pebblepaw or Cloudpaw."

"I take it Pebblepaw and Cloudpaw are the foxes?" Jayfeather asked.

"Yes. They're siblings." Snaketail responded. "For a while we also had their other two siblings and their aunt but the other three chose to stay behind when we began traveling."

"They smell different than most foxes Thunderclan has dealt with." Jayfeather commented, a question in his voice.

"They're not red foxes." Mothwing responded.

"No, they're gray foxes." Snaketail agreed.

"How did you come to have foxes in your clan?" Kestrelflight asked.

"Does it matter? They're our clanmates now." Nightpaw reproached.

"Sorry, I was just curious." Kestrelflight muttered, his ears back.

"Hardly worth clawing his ears for." Jayfeather snipped. Willowshine shot an incredulous look at him and Jayfeather twitched his whiskers in a way that seemed almost amused.

"Hey, I need my medicine cats. We need to figure out how Leafclan will split." Darkstar interrupted the conversation. Snaketail and Nightpaw bid the other medicine cats farewell before they followed Darkstar to the rest of Leafclan.

"So Brighttalon and I already decided to stay in the same clan. Who will go into the new clan?"

"I will." Shiningheart stated.

"We will also." Hazelwood added, referring to Spruceheart, Eaglewing, and herself.

"I'll go with them." Snowlion surprised Darkstar by saying.

"I'm also going to." Snaketail decided, torn but wanting to stay with Snowlion more.

"I think I will too." Silverfire said.

"I'm with her." Wolffang commented.

"We are too." Tornadoclaw stated, wrapping her tail around her kits. Moonleap pressed close to her side.

"I think I'm going to follow Shiningheart." Pebblepaw stated uncertainly, glancing at her mentor.

"If you wanted to stay with us, we could find you another mentor." Darkstar offered.

"Thank you, but the other clan will be stronger if they also have a fox with them." Pebblepaw argued. Darkstar nodded, unable to respond.

"By my count, we've almost got as many warriors as you do now, Darkstar." Shiningheart commented. "You have two more than us."

"I'll also go into the new clan." Frostpelt decided. "That way it's even."

"Alright. Well, I guess this is goodbye. We'll meet again next full moon."

"Go well. And take care." Frostpelt said, rubbing her head against her son's.

"Fair winds." Wildear replied, rubbing her side against Frostpelt's. Soon everyone that was originally from Leafclan were bidding farewell to their friends and family in the other clan.

After the salutations were done, Darkstar led what remained of his clan over to Firestar to ask about the extra territory on their border and Silverfire led the rest to Mistystar for the same reason. On their leader's orders, Brambleclaw of Thunderclan and Reedwhisker of Riverclan brought the newest clans to their land.

"Thanks." Darkstar said in gratitude as Brambleclaw turned to leave.

"No problem." Brambleclaw responded. "Good luck." He added as he left.

Darkstar looked around at his clanmates before speaking again.

"We'll need to find a camp. Rosethorn, take Shadowlion, Blackpaw, and Dustpaw out toward the lake. Brighttalon, take Dawnpaw, Embershade, and Badgerswipe towards Thunderclan territory. Wildear, Duskmist, Nightpaw, and Rabbitpaw, go in the direction of Shadowclan territory. Crimsonclaw, Sandpelt, Cloudpaw, and I will go in the opposite direction of the lake. We'll meet back here either after we find somewhere or after we reach the border."

Each of the patrol leaders nodded and led their group in the assigned direction.

As Darkstar and his patrol walked, they each left often to examine some clearing or hollow but the group was silent as they found no place that could comfortably house all of them.

They had nearly left clan territory before anyone found a potential camp worth breaking the silence for.

"This might work." Crimsonclaw called out from a few feet away from the rest of his patrol. Darkstar led the other two over to where Crimsonclaw was standing in front of a very large, hollow log. The log sloped so that the far end was buried in the ground but the near side was open at least three times as tall as Darkstar. A live tree had grown on the log so that its roots framed the opening and various smaller plants blanketed the rest of the log. Darkstar recognized skullcap and California poppy among the plants growing atop the log. As Darkstar led the way inside, a small hole at the end of the cave allowed in enough light for them to see that rainfall had hollowed out a dip in the sandy soil deep enough for leaves to coat the bottom and hold in water.

"This could make a nice camp. We'll see if the other patrols found anything better but we'll tell them about this one too." Darkstar decided before bringing his clanmates back towards the decided upon meeting place. Rosethorn's patrol was already waiting when Darkstar's patrol arrived and Wildear's patrol returned soon after. A few minutes passed before Brighttalon brought his patrol back.

"Anyone find anything interesting?" Darkstar asked once they were all assembled.

"There are no good places between here and the lake." Rosethorn complained, sounding annoyed. "There is, however, a fair-sized campground over there. We were given territory that we won't be able to use a quarter of during summer at least."

"I suppose there had to have been a reason Blackstar and Firestar didn't claim this land beforehand." Darkstar reasoned.

"We found somewhere that could work, if we put some work into it." Wildear reported.

"We didn't find anything." Brighttalon commented.

"And we found somewhere that isn't too bad, although it is kind of far from the lake." Darkstar said. "Let's look at Wildear's possible camp first. Then we'll look at the one my group found and see which one looks better."

Wildear nodded and she stood to lead the rest of the clan toward Shadowclan's border. After they had walked for a while, they entered into a small clearing surrounded by trees soaked with thick, heavy moss. The four deer that had been grazing looked up at the newcomers for a moment before three of them returned to their meal.

"This was the camp we looked at but it looks claimed." Wildear commented, watching the deer.

"Alright, let's go look at the other one then." Darkstar decided, leading his clan away again.

They walked for much longer before reaching the hollow log and when they arrived, Cloudpaw raced ahead.

"Bet I can get to the top of the tree before any of you." He howled.

"No way!" Dustpaw argued, launching himself at the side of the log and using his claws to climb. Cloudpaw chose a spot nearby and latched on with his front paws, using his hind legs to push himself up.

"This is the camp my patrol found." Darkstar explained to the rest of his clan. "If you want to look inside, go ahead." As he spoke, the other cats moved forward, a few at a time, to examine the log more closely. Nightpaw chased the other apprentices off the top and sniffed at the plants growing there while Brighttalon and Badgerswipe explored inside.

After each cat had thoroughly looked it over, it was decided that this would be their new camp. Embershade claimed the far back of the log, behind the water-hole, as the nursery and Nightpaw took the other side for the medicine area. After Darkstar agreed to let her have that spot, she began carving out holes in the log for her plants like she had in their first camp. The apprentices were given the space after Nightpaw and the warriors came after them. Looking at the small space left, Darkstar decided he would just share the warriors' sleeping space and any elders that they got later would share the nursery with the queens and kits.

"And we'll have clan meetings out in front." Darkstar announced, jumping to the highest point on the top of the log and being careful not to crush any of the plants.

"Speaking of, Blackpaw come forward."

All of the clan rejoined outside, looking up at Darkstar, and Blackpaw stepped forward.

"Your training with Moonleap was incomplete so I'm giving you a new mentor. Duskmist, you'll take over her training."

Duskmist moved forward and Blackpaw brushed noses with him as the rest of the clan congratulated them.

"And I've decided that our clan will be called Fireclan. Does anyone disagree?"

There were murmurs as the newly named Fireclan discussed it but nobody spoke out against it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

"Crimsonclaw, take Duskmist and Blackpaw on border patrol along the Shadowclan border." Brighttalon instructed. "Badgerswipe, was there anything to report from dawn patrol?"

"No, everything's quiet."

"Okay. And Rosethorn, bring Embershade and Sandpelt on a hunting patrol. Wildear, you and Rabbitpaw are going to join me, Dawnpaw, Darkstar, and Cloudpaw for battle training."

Wildear nodded in acknowledgement and went to fetch her apprentice while Rosethorn and her patrol followed Crimsonclaw's patrol out of camp. Nightpaw followed the mentors and their apprentices out of the log but left the group soon after to see what sort of medicinal plants were in this territory.

It was nearly sunhigh before any of the patrols returned, and then Crimsonclaw's and Rosethorn's patrols ran into the cats that had been on dawn patrol a little ways away from camp.

"I thought you were still at camp." Rosethorn said in surprise.

"We thought we'd do a little unofficial hunting." Shadowlion explained. Badgerswipe and Dustpaw stood behind her with their jaws full of prey. Rosethorn acknowledged the answer with a nod and led the other two patrols to the entrance of the log. A scratching, snuffling noise stopped them just outside.

"Leave the prey under that bush." Rosethorn instructed her patrol and Shadowlion repeated the order to her hunting partners. Meanwhile, Crimsonclaw and Sandpelt bristled as they approached.

"Badger." Sandpelt reported to the others.

"It will need an escape route." Badgerswipe mused. "The hole in the back of the log is too small for a badger."

"Good thinking." Sandpelt agreed. "Badgerswipe, go through the hole in the back first, and make yourself seem as big as you can. Shadowlion, with your long fur, you could also look really big so I want you to go next. Duskmist and Crimsonclaw will be right behind you. Do not strike the badger but yowl and move forward in a line. Your intent is to scare it out of the log. As soon as it gets completely out of the log, Rosethorn, Embershade, Blackpaw, Dustpaw and I will join in the attack."

"Can we claw its pelt once it's out?" Crimsonclaw asked.

"Yes," Sandpelt agreed. "We can claw its pelt then."

"Great." Crimsonclaw said, jumping to the top of the log.

"Wait." The other cats turned to look at Blackpaw. "What if we block out the light. Then the badger would have no idea how many cats there are or how big they are."

"Do you think that you'd be okay without light?" Sandpelt asked the cats assigned to go inside.

"Of course." Crimsonclaw agreed without hesitation. Badgerswipe nodded, looking slightly surprised that Sandpelt even needed to ask. Duskmist flicked his ears in agreement. Shadowlion looked less certain but she didn't argue.

"Okay then. Any ideas on how to block out the light?"

"If another cat took my place inside, I could lay over the hole and block out the light that way." Badgerswipe volunteered.

"I'll go in." Rosethorn spoke up, undaunted by the darkness.

"Okay. Shadowlion, you go first, followed by Duskmist. Then Crimsonclaw, and Rosethorn last. Badgerswipe will cover the hole as soon as you're in. Then we go through the previously described battle plan. Each of the cats nodded and moved into position with the cats outside the log hiding in the undergrowth around its mouth.

A loud screeching and yowling came from the log and the badger, scared by the noise and sudden darkness, turned around and lumbered out quickly. As her tail exited the camp, Sandpelt and Embershade exploded from the bush they were hiding under with a loud snarl. Blackpaw and Dustpaw leaped out from the other side just as loudly a moment before the cats inside came into view and Badgerswipe ran along the top of the log to appear on its highest point. This proved too much for the badger and it fled. Crimsonclaw, Sandpelt, Rosethorn, and Blackpaw chased after it to herd it out of Fireclan territory.

"What happened?" Darkstar asked Shadowlion as he and the cats he was training with returned to camp. "We heard screaming."

"A badger found our camp while it was empty so we scared it out. Crimsonclaw, Rosethorn, Sandpelt, and Blackpaw chased it off."

"I'm glad the camp was empty at the time. I'd hate for one of our clanmates to be trapped in there."

"We won't be." Shadowlion promised.

"What do you mean?"

"The hole in the back allows an escape route."

"Would everyone be able to fit through it?"

"I could, if only barely." Badgerswipe added.

Darkstar looked at the fat white she-cat and nodded. Badgerswipe was easily the largest cat in Fireclan.

Rosethorn led the other three cats back soon after with Nightpaw walking alongside Crimsonclaw as he talked to her. Blackpaw and Nightpaw each had a mouthful of plants.

Darkstar was the first to go inside, sniffing carefully for any other potential dangers but the camp was empty save for the rest of Fireclan following him in. Nightpaw showed Blackpaw where to place the plants and began sorting them into several piles. While she was doing that and the other cats were settling down into their nests, Brighttalon organized a few cats to find and retrieve the prey the hunting patrols had caught and Sandpelt described the fight to Darkstar.

At sunset that night, Darkstar leaped onto the log.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather in front of the camp for a clan meeting." They came out a few at a time, not expecting a meeting to be called, and sat beneath him.

"After the fight with the badger today I've decided that every cat will be trained in darkness. I want us all to be able to fight at any time, even in complete darkness."

"Fire burns brightest in darkness." Brighttalon added. Darkstar smiled and nodded in agreement with his friend.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

Darkstar woke around sunset the following day. He and half the clan stayed awake all night performing various tasks. Darkstar and Cloudpaw had been training with Shadowlion and Dustpaw. Sandpelt and Crimsonclaw were hunting and Badgerswipe and Embershade went on patrol.

After the meeting yesterday, Darkstar and Brighttalon decided that for one moon half of Fireclan would take up nocturnal habits and the two groups would switch for the next moon. This way every cat would get nighttime training but the territory wouldn't be left undefended during the day.

Brighttalon looked up and, upon seeing that Darkstar was awake, got up and walked over to him.

"Hey." Darkstar greeted him. "Anything news-worthy?"

"Well, in regards to the Place of No Stars, all of the mentors sent their apprentices away early. Apparently they had a meeting they had to go to. Wildear and Snowlion tried to see what the meeting was about but Tawnyheather, Snowlion's mentor, caught them and clawed their ears for not listening when they were first sent away. Nightpaw's already given them some cobwebs but the scratches weren't bad.

"On a different note, Rosethorn and Nightpaw found an entrance to a system of tunnels. They didn't go in very far because they didn't know how stable they were but they saw that a lot of tunnels spread off of the one they went in."

"Okay, I don't want anyone going into the tunnels at least until we can determine their stability."

"'Kay, I'll make it known."

"Thanks." Brighttalon regained his paws and stretched.

"Well, I'm going to get some sleep. Enjoy your night."

"Good night. I'll see you around dawn."

"Yep." Brighttalon agreed with a nod, already heading to his nest.

Looking around, Darkstar was glad to see his group was stirring and waking up.

"Crimsonclaw, Dustpaw." Darkstar called. The two tomcats walked over, Dustpaw favoring one paw.

"How'd training go?"

"Heatherleaf sent me away right from the start." Crimsonclaw complained. "I didn't get any training."

"Rainthistle also sent me away but I was glad for the rest." Dustpaw added.

"Okay. Well, would the two of you take Shadowlion and patrol the Shadowclan border?"

Crimsonclaw nodded and Dustpaw went to fetch his mentor

As Darkstar walked past her to fetch Cloudpaw, Nightpaw sat up.

"I thought you'd be asleep; you were in the daylight group." Darkstar said in surprise.

"It's half moon tonight. I need to get going if I'm to get there on time." Nightpaw said, already halfway to the exit.

"Ah, okay. See you tomorrow."

Nightpaw waved her tail in acknowledgement as she left.

Nightpaw hurried toward Thunderclan territory, remembering from reading the Warriors books that the creek that led to the Moonpool lay on the border between Thunderclan and Windclan.

As she arrived, Nightpaw was surprised to find that only Jayfeather and Snaketail were there.

"Where are the others?" She asked, carefully walking down the path into the hollow.

"Apparently they're not coming." Snaketail answered.

"Why not?"

"Starclan has separated. We were each told to stay away from each other." Jayfeather responded.

"Then why are you here? And why didn't Starclan tell us the same?"

"I'm here because Starclan are being mouse-brained." Jayfeather said bluntly.

"And my theory on why Starclan didn't tell us is because of how we came to be here." Snaketail answered. Jayfeather sent a startled glance in Snaketail's direction disproportionate to her answer.

"I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't tell anyone else." Snaketail said, addressing Jayfeather directly. Nightpaw suddenly remembered that he had the ability to listen in on other cats' thoughts and emotions. "I think it would cause complications if the rest of the clan cats knew that we were once human."

Jayfeather swallowed, visibly collecting himself.

"_How_?"

"Long ago, a Riverclan tom took to kit-killing. Starclan couldn't stop him so they found a way to let the kits he murdered live. They found willing host bodies to keep the kittens safe until they could be returned to the clans. Once we were all assembled, Starclan gave us feline bodies to better bring us here."

"There are so many secrets and so much strangeness these days. What's one more secret on top of that? I won't tell anyone."

"Thank you, Jayfeather."

"Thanks." Nightpaw added.

"Were all of you originally twolegs?"

"No, but most of us were. Obviously neither of the foxes was. And Duskmist, Badgerswipe, Crimsonclaw, Moonleap, Snowlion, Tornadoclaw, and Silverstar's and Tornadoclaw's kits were all born feline."

"Do any of them know your origin?"

"Badgerswipe, Crimsonclaw, Moonleap, Snowlion, and Tornadoclaw do. The five of them were originally kittypets. Four of them lived with me."

"What about the fifth?"

"Tornadoclaw lived with Silverstar."

"As much as I enjoy conversing, we're wasting moonlight." Nightpaw interrupted them.

"Right." Snaketail agreed, standing again. "I just have one more thing to do before we share tongues with Starclan.

"I, Snaketail, medicine cat of Winterclan, call upon Starclan to look down on this apprentice. She has trained hard to understand the ways of a medicine cat, and with your help she will serve her clan for many moons. Nightpaw, do you promise to uphold the ways of a medicine cat, to stand apart from rivalry between clan and clan, and to protect all cats equally, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do." Nightpaw promised, all the more decidedly after thinking about Starclan's separation.

"Then I give you your true name as a medicine cat. Nightpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Nightshade. Starclan honors your courage in the face of difficulty." Snaketail leaned forward and laid her muzzle atop Nightshade's head. Nightshade licked Snaketail's shoulder in return.

"Thank you, Snaketail. I'll do my best for Fireclan and for all the clans."

"I know you will. I'm just sorry the other four medicine cats weren't here to welcome you."

Nightshade nodded in acknowledgement of their absence and shrugged to show that she didn't really care too much before laying down to drink from the Moonpool. Jayfeather and Snaketail followed her into sleep.

When Nightshade opened her eyes again, she was sitting alone in the stone hollow of Moonpool.

"Is anyone there?" She called, looking around. After a moment, a long-furred pale gray-and-white she-cat walked to the top edge of the hollow, her bright blue eyes scanning around the top before looking down at Nightshade. As her eyes met Nightshade's, they filled with a sorrow and pain difficult to look at.

"Who are you?" Nightshade asked, thinking she looked vaguely familiar. The name Lavenderflame drifted into Nightshade's mind a moment before the other cat spoke.

"I am Lavenderflame of Shadowclan."

"Jayfeather said Starclan was separated."

"We are. But we can still visit our kin."

"Kin?"

"Yes, you were in the first litter of kits who was murdered by my mate's brother. As was your brother, Darkstar. The two of you were in my litter."

"So I was half-clan?" _Darkstar's my brother?_

"Yes. Pickerelpelt of Riverclan was my mate but his brother, Yellowtail, couldn't stand the idea of his brother breaking the warrior code like that. It drove him to madness. You must help prepare all the clans to face him and cats much like him."

"How?"

"You need to reunite Starclan. Follow Jayfeather." Her voice and image began to fade partway through the last sentence and she was gone not long after it finished.

Nightshade woke to see Snaketail still crouched next to the moonpool, eyes staring blankly forward and Jayfeather just beginning to stir. Jayfeather finished waking and sat up without Snaketail moving at all.

"Did either of you dream?" Nightshade asked, wishing it was more generally accepted to share dreams from Starclan.

"Yeah, I did." Jayfeather agreed.

"I need to return to my camp. I'll see you both later." Snaketail said, her voice slightly off, before she fled from the moonpool hollow back toward Winterclan territory.

"I hope she's okay." Nightshade commented, worried as she watched her former mentor run as though haunted.

"Jayfeather?" A new voice called. Nightshade looked up to see Mothwing of Riverclan approaching the moonpool.

"Are the two of you the only ones who came?"

"Snaketail also came but she left already." Jayfeather answered.

"Willowshine refused." Mothwing padded to the edge of the pool and leaned to sniff at the water. "What is going on with Starclan? Willowshine told me they'd ordered her to stay away from the other medicine cats. It doesn't make sense. Our shared code helps the clans fight sickness. In the past it's helped keep the peace."

Jayfeather looked directly at the golden cat as though he could see her. "Our code is no longer enough. Starclan is frightened."

"Of what?"

"The Dark Forest."

"Willowshine says there will be a battle between Starclan and the Dark Forest." Mothwing walked around the edge of the pool as she spoke.

"She's right. But when it comes, it won't be just in our dreams; it'll be _real_. It'll be fought between living cats on clan territory."

Mothwing froze. "How can that be?"

"The Dark Forest warriors have been training clan cats as they sleep."

"Some of my clanmates have been acting strange. Restless and argumentative."

"Who?"

"Hollowflight, Icewing –"

"What about Beetlewhisker?"

"How did you know?"

"We need to unite the clans." Jayfeather said, ignoring her question and beginning to pace. "The battle won't be fought over boundaries this time. Our very survival is at stake."

"What can I do to help?" Mothwing asked.

Jayfeather paused in his pacing to look straight at her again. "Hawkfrost is involved."

"My brother? How?"

"He has chosen darkness over light."

"I am not my brother. I have always chosen a different path from him. My loyalty is to living clanmates, not dead littermates."

"So you'd fight him if you had to?"

"Fight him? He's already dead!"

"But the living and dead are training together to destroy the clans! They are using our own clanmates against us."

"How will we know who to trust?"

"We won't until the battle begins. But if we can stop Starclan from driving the clans apart, we stand a chance of winning."

"I can't help you change what dead cats do, but I might be able to help guide the living ones. I'll try to persuade Willowshine to visit the Moonpool again."

"Will she listen to you over Starclan?"

"I don't know. But I have to try. And if I think of a way to make the other medicine cats listen, I'll come and find you." Mothwing leaned forward to brush Jayfeather's muzzle with her own. "You're not alone anymore, Jayfeather." Mothwing led Jayfeather out of the hollow and Nightshade watched them leave. Neither of them thought to see if she was following.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Darkstar was reluctant to go to sleep while Nightpaw was still out but the sun was rising well into the sky and he knew that she could easily end up arriving late in the day. Instead he talked with Wildear after she woke up.

"Anything new?"

"More training. A Thunderclan tortoiseshell hurt her paw while we raced up a tree."

"Not too bad, I trust?"

"No, didn't look like it. And there was another Thunderclan tom there who can take care of her."

"Well, that's good. And the Dark Forest cats didn't say anything of their plans?"

"No, not yet."

"Alright. Just keep your ears open."

"I always do." Darkstar nodded and Wildear stood to leave. There was a moment when she looked back and Darkstar thought she was going to say something else but then she licked a bit of moss off her flank and continued towards the exit.

Exhausted, Darkstar curled up in his nest and slept. Brighttalon woke him just as the sun finished setting.

"What's up?" Darkstar asked, stretching.

"I gave Dawnpaw and Blackpaw an assessment today and I think that they're both ready for their warrior names."

"Alright. Who all's awake now?"

"The daylight warriors are relaxing but it doesn't look like any of them are asleep yet." Brighttalon reported, looking around. "Badgerswipe, Sandpelt, and Shadowlion are all awake and up. Oh, Embershade is too. And Dustpaw is just beginning to stir. Crimsonclaw and Cloudpaw are still asleep."

"'Kay. Could you wake them?"

"Sure." Brighttalon agreed, weaving towards Crimsonclaw's nest. While he did that, Darkstar left the camp to climb on top of the log.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather in front of the camp for a clan meeting." His clanmates joined him outside, casting confused glances at each other. Brighttalon and Cloudpaw were the last to leave the log. "Dawnpaw, Blackpaw, step forward."

Dawnpaw's eyes widened as they both came to understand what the meeting was about.

"I, Darkstar, leader of Fireclan, call upon all of you to look upon these apprentices as they take their first steps into being warriors. They've both trained hard throughout their apprenticeship. Dawnpaw, do you promise to uphold our code and to protect and defend this clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do."

"Good. Then from this moment on, you will be known as Dawnbranch. Blackpaw, do you promise to uphold our code and to protect and defend your clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do." Blackpaw's eyes focused on something in the ferns beside the log and grew infinitesimally larger.

"Your warrior name will be Blackhawk. You'll both be required to sit a silent vigil tonight. You can return to your nests come sunrise."

There was a clamor of happy noise as their clanmates congratulated the new warriors and Darkstar looked on contentedly.

'This is a nice task.' He decided. 'It's good to see my clanmates happy.'

Nightpaw slipped around the edge of the crowd until she was able to climb up to the top of the log with Darkstar.

"Did Starclan share with you the other night?" He asked quietly.

"Yes." Nightpaw responded at the same volume. "And I got my full name. I'm Nightshade now."

"Congratulations. Do you want me to tell the clan?"

"There's no need. They'll each learn it before long and I don't really care for that much attention." Nightshade twitched her whiskers towards the new warriors. "And I learned a little more about our past."

"Yeah?"

"Yes. Lavenderflame, a Shadowclan queen in Starclan told me that Starclan is, as of recently, separated back into four distinct clans but that the cats of Starclan can still visit their kin. You and I were in her litter, we were the first kittens to be killed by our father's brother, Yellowtail of Riverclan."

"Cool! Who else am I related to?" Nightshade laughed at his excited tone.

"I'm not sure yet but I'll make a project of finding out. Our parents were Lavenderflame and Pickerelpelt. Yellowtail is Pickerelpelt's brother and I believe they had two other siblings but I'm not certain. Sunfish is Yellowtail and Pickerelpelt's mother."

"That explains why she was so interested in talking to you when we first began."

"Yeah, I feel kind of bad for being so harsh on her."

"I explained to her what I understood from your disagreement and she acknowledged that she wasn't as understanding as she should have been either."

"Thanks for that."

"I got the chance." Darkstar said with a shrug. They sat in silence for a while as their clanmates settled back inside the log. Darkstar waved his tail at Nightshade and they jumped down so that Dawnbranch and Blackhawk could sit their vigil in that spot.

"Oh, and Wildear has exciting news that you should ask her about." Nightshade said as she passed him to get to her nest. Darkstar watched her leave and, curious as to what she meant, followed her part of the way until he reached Wildear's nest. Wildear was just curling up with Duskmist lying next to her and they both looked up at him.

"Hey, Nightshade you had some news?" Darkstar asked. Duskmist smiled and licked the top of Wildear's head before she spoke.

"We're expecting kits." She told him, wrapping her tail around her belly.

"What?"

"I'm going to have kittens."

"Yes, I heard that."

"Was there a different answer you were looking for?" Duskmist asked.

"It's just surprising." Darkstar decided. "You're my youngest sister, Wildear."

"I recall. But the kittens will be well taken care of." Wildear responded.

"You have to tell our mom, Duskmist." Darkstar told him. Duskmist blinked at him.

"What?"

"It'll be up to you to tell Mom that Wildear's pregnant."

"Frostpelt's in Winterclan on the opposite side of the lake."

"You can come to the next Gathering. And if she's not there, you'll come to each one until she is."

"Alright." Duskmist relented, laying a little lower in their nest. Darkstar returned to his nest near the front of the log, still trying to get used to the fact of Wildear's pregnancy.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

Crimsonclaw looked over his shoulder at the two she-cats sitting on top of the camp-log as he led Shadowlion and Dustpaw out for patrol and twitched his stub of a tail at them. Dawnbranch nodded and Blackhawk waved her tail in return before the moonhigh patrol left. Darkstar watched them walk away before using his tail to summon Cloudpaw and Sandpelt.

"We're going to go hunt down near the lake. I want to see if we'll be able to catch fish from it." Darkstar informed them, leading them out. His companions nodded in acknowledgement and they walked in silence to the lake's edge.

"Someone's here." Cloudpaw growled softly, focusing his attention of a juniper bush about twice his length away from the group. Darkstar and Sandpelt both looked but Darkstar couldn't see anyone. Darkstar opened his mouth to ask Cloudpaw who or what it was but the young fox was already approaching the bush. Once he got near, Cloudpaw yipped something in fox and a large red fox came around the juniper and bared his teeth at the younger fox.

Cloudpaw barked a laugh at the larger fox's daring and yipped more words at him. The red fox backed off a step and looked Cloudpaw over. He yipped at Cloudpaw and Cloudpaw used his muzzle to gesture back at Darkstar and Sandpelt before responding. The red fox spared the cats a quick glance before turning his attention back to the apprentice.

After a little more yipping back and forth, the red fox turned around and left. Cloudpaw watched until he was no longer in view, and then turned back to the older warriors.

"He promised to be out of our territory by sundown tonight. He was reluctant to leave without hunting but I convinced him to."

"I thought he was going to attack you there at first." Sandpelt commented.

"He wouldn't dare." Cloudpaw scoffed. "Every fox knows that Grays are better fighters than any other type of fox."

"Really?" Darkstar asked, impressed.

"Yeah. 'Course. Any one of us could easily chase off a dog twice our size."

Then Sandpelt noticed a shrew nearby and the three of them began their hunt. Upon searching the lakeside, Darkstar found a dock on the Shadowclan border. Darkstar knew the theory of how cats could catch fish so he took the first try.

After missing the first few fish Darkstar stepped back to let Sandpelt take a turn and looked up to see three cats standing on the lakeside in Riverclan territory watching them; a dark gray cat, a brown and white cat, and a tortoiseshell and white cat. The brown and white cat bristled angrily but the gray one leaned over to say something before leading the other two across Shadowclan territory towards Darkstar's patrol. They stuck close to the lake's edge and ran across the enemy land.

"Sandpelt, Cloudpaw." Darkstar murmured, drawing their attention to the Riverclan intruders. The two of them looked up and moved to stand on either side of their leader.

"Did you need something?" Darkstar called once the Riverclanners were within hearing range.

"We just came to let you know that fishing and the fish in the lake are for Riverclan warriors. No other clan fishes." The dark gray she-cat said firmly.

"The lake is large and borders on every clan's territory. Surely there are enough fish in it to feed more than one clan, especially alongside whatever other prey is caught."

"Riverclan are predominately fishers. We need as many of the fish as we can get if we're to survive."

"You wouldn't be able to reach the fish on this side of the lake anyway. Unless Riverclan warriors make a habit of hunting in other clans' territory." The brown and white cat lifted her fur again at his words and the gray cat's eyes flashed angrily. However, the gray cat touched the brown one's shoulder with her tail and forced her own anger down.

"If your clan insists on stealing our fish, you will have problems with Riverclan." She warned before stepping back to turn around.

"Fireclan has not stolen anything from Riverclan. The fish don't belong to you any more than the lake does."

The tortoiseshell looked like he wanted to fight but the other two were already returning to Riverclan territory and he was left with no choice but to follow.

After watching to make sure the Riverclan cats went back to their own territory, Darkstar turned around to address his own clanmates.

"I don't want any patrols smaller than four trying to fish from now on." He decided aloud. After his clanmates acknowledged his words, Darkstar continued speaking. "For now, do you two want to continue trying or should we head home?"

"I'll give it another try." Sandpelt decided. The sandy-furred warrior almost managed to catch one but it wriggled back into the water before he could give it a killing blow. By the time they did return to camp the three of them together carried two shrews, a vole, a young hare, and a robin.

(Sorry for the short chapter. I hope to improve on that for the next one.)


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

"Hey, Darkstar?" Darkstar looked up from his grooming to see Dustpaw step around Badgerswipe's nest to talk.

"Yeah?"

"Applefur invited me to bring some of our clanmates who were training in the Place of No Stars to do some daylight training on the Shadowclan border. Do you mind if we go?"

"Who all did you plan on bringing?"

"I thought we could all go. Wildear, Duskmist, Blackhawk, Crimsonclaw, and me."

"I'll need some of them for the regular duties. You can invite Blackhawk and Duskmist. Do you know how many cats Applefur will bring?"

"I don't know how many. I know that Ferretclaw will be there but I don't know if they're going to bring others."

"Okay. Just take care; I don't want any of you getting hurt."

"I'll do my best to be careful."

"I'll have Brighttalon hunting nearby so that if there is any trouble, he can help out."

"Thank you, Darkstar." Dustpaw dipped his head to Darkstar in gratitude before running off to find Duskmist or Blackhawk. Darkstar stretched and forced himself to his paws again to go in search of his deputy. After seeing that his silver-furred friend wasn't in camp, Darkstar went to the exit and was glad to see that Brighttalon's patrol hadn't gotten very far.

"Brighttalon!" Darkstar called, running to catch up. Brighttalon stopped and, along with Wildear and Rabbitpaw, turned to look back at him.

"What's up?"

"Dustpaw is planning on meeting some of the Shadowclan apprentices to the Dark Forest on that border for some daylight battle training."

"Is that wise?" Brighttalon asked, worried about the young tom's safety.

"He's going to invite Blackhawk and Duskmist to come and I told him you'd be hunting nearby if there's trouble."

"Alright. Do you know when they'll go over there?"

"I don't but Dustpaw is still in camp if you wanted to ask him."

"'Kay. Wildear, I'll send Rosethorn out when I see her. She can take my place on the patrol."

"Okay." Wildear acknowledged, sitting down to wait.

Darkstar followed Brighttalon back into camp and flopped down into his nest while Brighttalon spoke with his family. He was asleep before Rosethorn left camp.

Darkstar's dreams were plagued with shadowy feline forms that clawed and tugged at his pelt. Worse than that, he could hear someone calling for help but the crowd of attackers slowed him down too much to reach the cat in trouble.

He woke, dissatisfied, as the sun was setting. Duskmist was just leading Blackhawk and Dustpaw into camp when Darkstar sat up.

"How was training?" He asked around a yawn.

"It was kind of fun." Dustpaw answered. "Applefur and Ferretclaw brought Ferretclaw's uncle; Ratscar."

"It was difficult." Blackhawk complained. "Iceheart hasn't shown me some of those attacks yet."

"You'll have something to ask him about tonight." Duskmist commented.

"That's true." Blackhawk agreed.

"Well, go ahead and get something to eat. It looks like a hunting patrol got in recently." Darkstar dismissed them, flicking his tail at the fresh pile of prey next to the water-hole.

Blackhawk and Dustpaw raced for the pile and Duskmist purred in amusement as he followed them.

Brighttalon stepped into camp a moment later with a mouthful of prey and twitched his whiskers as Dustpaw pounced on Blackhawk to slow her down so that he could get ahead. Brighttalon nodded in greeting and Darkstar responded in kind as Brighttalon passed him. After Brighttalon added his catch to the pile, he grabbed a couple moles and returned to his friend's side.

"What's up?" Darkstar asked as Brighttalon dropped one of the moles in front of him and settled down to eat his.

"I wanted to let you know that Rosethorn is pregnant again."

"You wore the sayian armor, didn't you?"

"Heck, yeah!" The two of them shared a laugh before finishing their meal and grooming each other.

"Well, I'm going to get some sleep. Your turn to be leader again." Brighttalon said, stretching.

"'Night." Darkstar replied. As Brighttalon settled down next to Rosethorn, Darkstar sought out Badgerswipe and Cloudpaw for border patrol.

"What can you smell?" Darkstar asked his apprentice as they neared the Thunderclan border.

"Faint twoleg scent from the campsite back there… A dog passed by here a while ago, probably with another twoleg… Squirrel… Pigeon… and cat scent."

"Familiar?"

Cloudpaw sniffed around a little more before answering.

"No, it could be a Thunderclan cat though." Darkstar and Badgerswipe stepped forward to check out the scent.

"Yes, it's a Thunderclanner. She was at the Gathering we arrived in." Badgerswipe commented.

"Do you know her?"

"I talked to her a little bit but I don't remember her name. She had gray fur."

"What are you doing here?" A hostile voice growled. Darkstar looked up to see a large golden tomcat standing on the borderline, bristling. Four other cats stood behind him; an equally large thick-furred gray tom, a long-furred white tom, a gray tabby she-cat, and a ginger she-cat with one white paw.

"Patrolling our borders." Darkstar responded coldly, staring pointedly at the golden tom's paws. The gray tom shoved the hostile one back a step with a whispered question.

"We found some Thunderclan scent on our land." Badgerswipe observed calmly. "It smells quite fresh."

"Let me check." The golden tom insisted, strolling boldly across the border and standing directly over where the original smell was. "I smell nothing."

"Get off our land." Darkstar growled slowly. The tom flexed his claws as Darkstar and his clanmates approached.

"Get back here!" The gray tom ordered.

"You'd better leave. Your master's calling." Darkstar taunted

"What's the matter?" The golden tom asked, ignoring Darkstar. "Are you scared I'll hurt someone?"

"Only yourself." Badgerswipe muttered.

"Get back, Lionblaze! We didn't come here to start a fight."

"Perhaps we got here just in time to stop one." Lionblaze growled.

"If you're looking for a fight, you've got one!" Cloudpaw snarled, stepping forward.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" The gray tom asked with narrow eyes.

"Come back, Lionblaze!" The ginger she-cat called.

"They claimed a Thunderclan cat had been on their land," Lionblaze snarled. "I'm just giving them proof." He spat at the Fireclan warriors. "Happy now?"

Cloudpaw snarled furiously and leapt at him. Lionblaze reared up and batted the young fox away.

"Does Fireclan send its apprentices into battle first?"

"Only against low-class cats such as yourself." Darkstar said with bared teeth as Badgerswipe pressed closer.

"Do you want me to finish him off before I start on you?"

Badgerswipe screeched as she and Darkstar lunged at the large Thunderclan tomcat.

"Help him!" The ginger she-cat said, beginning to move forward.

"He started this fight." The gray warrior growled, stepping on her tail to stop her. "Let him finish it."

"No!" Lionblaze yowled, unsuccessfully ducking a blow to the ear. After several strikes, Darkstar realized that the enemy tom wasn't even trying to return the attacks. Lionblaze finally pushed Darkstar off and swept a paw out towards Darkstar's front paws. Darkstar reared back to avoid the move and swiped at Lionblaze's muzzle. Badgerswipe dug her claws deep into Lionblaze's hips until he yowled in pain.

"Get off our land." Darkstar repeated, shoving Lionblaze back into his own territory. The gray tom caught Lionblaze's scruff and pinned him to the ground.

"Hold him!" The gray warrior ordered his clanmates. The ginger she-cat and white tom moved forward and held him down.

"I'm sorry." The gray cat said, taking a step closer to address Darkstar. "We had no orders to cross into your territory."

"Doesn't matter. Just, next time any of you decide to fight us, or just spar, that is playfight, take the fight seriously."

There was a slight hesitation as the Thunderclan tom processed what Darkstar said, then he nodded. "We'll keep that in mind." The gray tabby she-cat and the white tom stared at Darkstar.

As the Thunderclan patrol left, Darkstar saw the leader of the patrol question Lionblaze.

(Sayian armor is from a youtube parody titled Dragon Ball Z Abridged.)


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

"What are you thinking?" Shadowlion startled Darkstar out of his thoughts. He had been sitting on top of the camp watching the sun rise.

"Just thinking about us, the humans we used to be. How we all used to play and laugh as we carelessly wandered our little town. How we used to play silly games and they never really meant anything. But then we had to try going that one step further, playing a warriors game out in the woods." Darkstar sighed. "And then everything changed."

"Maybe so," Shadowlion conceded. "But the spirit never died. Any of the humans turned cat would still do what you asked them, simply because it's you asking. This was true before we turned into cats and you became leader and it's still true now, even for the Winterclan cats."

"Do you really think so?"

"Of course I do." After a moment, Shadowlion stood and shook the chill from her fur. "Come on, let's get some sleep." Darkstar walked her to her nest but stopped her next to it with a touch of his tail.

"Will you, share my nest. I get cold, sleeping so close to the exit." The heartbeat that Shadowlion hesitated before answering felt like an eternity to the anxious Darkstar.

"Alright." Shadowlion shrugged but she also smiled and followed Darkstar to his nest at the front of the camp.

Darkstar woke, rested and happy, just after sunset that night. Shadowlion was still asleep and he spent a moment watching her flank rise and fall gently with each breath, the tips of her dark fur catching the last of the light.

As he slid carefully away from Shadowlion, Dawnbranch approached him.

"Darkstar?" She asked.

"Yeah?"

"A couple of Thunderclan cats found my patrol along that border today and said that they wanted to talk to you. I told them they'd have to come back after sunset and we agreed that they'd wait by that big oak tree. They called it the Ancient Oak."

"Alright. I guess I ought to go meet them then." He stretched and shook out his fur before looking around. "Hey, Sandpelt!" He called as the odd-eyed tom stood up.

"Hmm?"

"We're meeting some Thunderclan cats on the border."

"Who's 'we'?" Sandpelt asked as Darkstar approached.

"You, me, and Cloudpaw."

"Okay. Why?"

"I'm not sure yet but we'll see." Darkstar poked Cloudpaw with a paw while he spoke. Once the apprentice was awake, Darkstar led them out to the Thunderclan border.

As Dawnbranch had said, two cats were sitting underneath a large oak. The gray and white tom was crunching on some small land animal; a mouse or vole, and the dark cream she-cat was sitting up straight and staring into Fireclan territory. Her ears pricked up and she muttered something to her clanmate when Darkstar stepped out of the shadows.

"You asked to talk to me?" Darkstar asked.

"I'm Rosepetal and this is Mousewhisker. Millie said that you told Graystripe's patrol that Thunderclan cats could come here to train?" The cream-furred cat said.

"That's not quite what I said but yeah. I take it the two of you wanted to spar?"

"These days, any extra training seems like a good idea." Mousewhisker responded.

"That's true. My clan could always use some more also. We'll have to figure out a schedule, however, as there are certain clan duties that need to be done periodically."

"Of course." Rosepetal replied. "Would you be willing to train now?"

Darkstar glanced back at his clanmates to check their response. When neither objected, he returned his focus to the Thunderclan cats.

"I suppose we could." He agreed. Sandpelt sat back to watch as Darkstar and Cloudpaw fought with the two Thunderclanners but after a while he began offering suggestions to both sides. Not long after that, rustling in the undergrowth on the Fireclan side caught everyone's attention.

Shadowlion and Dustpaw stepped forward from behind a large bracken fern.

"Dawnbranch told us that you'd gone to meet some Thunderclan cats. I wanted to make sure there was no trouble."

"Thanks. But we're fine. They just wanted someone new to spar with. You remember the border fight Badgerswipe and I got into yesterday? Apparently my comment afterward was carried back to the Thunderclan camp."

"Okay. Just, do be careful."

"We are." Darkstar said, understanding her double meaning. Before he could return to the fight, four Thunderclan cats arrived. Brambleclaw led a dark brown tabby tom, a pale silver tom with black stripes, and a gray and white she-cat into view.

"What's going on?" Brambleclaw asked Rosepetal. She licked her lips slowly and Darkstar recognized this as a way to give her time to think of a response.

"We were sparring." He told the Thunderclan deputy. Brambleclaw glanced at Darkstar to acknowledge his answer before focusing on Mousewhisker. Mousewhisker looked away.

"Are your clanmates not enough to train with? Was it necessary to show a rival clan our tactics?"

"We didn't show them any more than they would have learned in a real battle." Rosethorn argued.

"They didn't need to learn even that much." The dark brown tabby scolded her.

"But Dustpelt–" She began. Brambleclaw cut her off.

"Come on. We're going back to camp."

"You know," Darkstar called to him. "We have no problem with training with cats from other clans. As long as every cat is careful, no secret attacks need be revealed and no one need get hurt. I find that if I only train with a specific few cats, I learn how they'll react to me and they learn how I react to them. Doing it that way, none of us gets any better. It's helpful to have new cats to train with every now and again."

"Be that as it may, the decision lies with Firestar; not with our younger warriors." Then the Thunderclan cats were gone and Darkstar was left alone with his clanmates.

"Sandpelt, d'you want to take the apprentices and hunt?"

"Sure." Sandpelt agreed before leading Cloudpaw and Dustpaw away.

Shadowlion and Darkstar took a circuitous route to camp and didn't get there until a little before Sandpelt, Cloudpaw, and Dustpaw. Badgerswipe approached Darkstar as he and Shadowlion walked in.

"I found out why we found the scent of the gray-furred Thunderclan cat on our territory."

"Oh? How come?"

"She and a Shadowclan tom were meeting each other just outside the border opposite the lake."

"Alright. Well, them meeting each other is between them and their leaders but if anyone finds either of them on our territory, we'll chase them back to their own."

"I'll spread it around." Badgerswipe promised.

"Thanks. What does the tom look like?"

"He's a dark brown tabby with amber eyes."

"Tell our clanmates that also. That way we know what to look for."

Badgerswipe twitched her tail in acknowledgement and wandered off to talk with Crimsonclaw. Nightshade looked up as Darkstar sat in his nest to groom and meandered over to him, stopping to talk to a few other cats on her way.

"What's up?"

"I found out more about our past family."

"Cool! What'd you find?"

"Lavenderflame had a sister named Silverflame. Sunfish's mate was named Beetlenose and he had two sisters; Petaldust and Voleclaw. Beetlenose's parents were Hailstar and Echomist. Voleclaw was the mother of Minnowpaw, Brighttalon, Silverstar, and Wolffang."

"So Brighttalon, Silverstar, and Wolffang are our sort of cousins?"

"Kendra also, yeah."

"I knew Brighttalon was too much like family to not be."

Nightshade purred a laugh before responding. "I can't say I ever really knew him well enough to think that. Do you think I should tell Silverstar that Wolffang used to be her brother?"

After some thought, Darkstar finally figured out how to respond. "Do so at your own discretion."

"All right. Well, I'm going to try to get some more sleep before dawn."

"'Kay. Good night."

"Night."


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

"We'll be visiting Fireclan territory tonight and, if we have enough time, we'll continue on to Shadowclan." Wildear lifted her head to attention as Tigerstar entered the clearing as he began speaking. "Wildear, you will guide us through Fireclan territory and Applefur will show us through Shadowclan."

"Sure." Wildear agreed. Applefur nodded in acknowledgement.

"Good. Then let's go." Tigerstar took off running and the patrol followed after him. As they ran, Wildear felt the now familiar change from the Place of No Stars to clan territory.

When they arrived in Fireclan territory, Wildear recognized the bridge across the stream nearby.

"We're very close to the border." Wildear commented.

"Which one?" Breezepelt asked.

"The Shadowclan border in that direction," Wildear said, pointing with her tail. "And over there leaves clan territory." She moved her tail to point in a direction perpendicular to the Shadowclan border.

"What can you tell us about Fireclan territory?" Tigerstar asked.

"As you can see, we have pine trees and oaks in our territory. The pine needles help us to walk silently so it's easier to sneak up on prey or enemies but we have to be more careful about being seen. The needles make it more difficult for undergrowth to grow. The bushes and ferns that grow under the oak trees help hide us but we need to be more careful about making noise."

"Which one is better for fighting?"

"It depends on the enemy. If we were fighting a Thunderclan patrol, we would rather fight under the pine trees whereas if we were fighting Shadowclan, using the undergrowth would be to our best interest. With rogues, we would be equally willing to fight in either area."

"Do you often use the stream and lake?" Beetlewhisker asked.

"Some of my clanmates enjoy going for a swim on the hotter days but not all of us do."

"What about fishing? I was on a patrol a few days ago and caught your leader fishing off the half-bridge."

"We are trying to learn how to fish but we haven't been very successful."

"I could show you." He offered.

"Thanks, I'd like that." Wildear accepted.

"You'll have to do so later. For now, we're just exploring clan territory." Tigerstar reminded them.

"Yeah." Wildear conceded. "Should we see the training grounds?"

"Sounds like a good start." Tawnyheather agreed, using her tail to gesture Wildear forward. Wildear led them across the bridge and followed the stream through the woods until she reached a large grassy clearing.

"We bring our new apprentices here to show them how to stalk and fight and as they gain experience, venture further into the forested areas."

"What attacks do you teach your apprentices that are specific to Fireclan?" Mapleshade asked.

"I don't know." Wildear replied. "Fireclan hasn't been here long and I don't know what attacks are considered basic in the other clans."

A low growl from the bushes at the edge of the clearing stopped her explanation as every cat turned to look in the direction of the newcomer. Breathing deeply, Wildear recognized Darkstar's scent underneath that of wet fern.

"We should move on to Shadowclan if we're going to see their territory tonight." Wildear heard Snowlion whisper to Tigerstar. The dark tabby nodded and led the cats back across the bridge towards the Shadowclan border. Wildear hesitated, wanting to talk to her brother but knew she couldn't explain it to the Dark Forest cats so followed them away.

'A little bit closer.' Darkstar decided as he stalked toward the small gray mouse. The mouse stood back on its hind legs and looked off to the right. Darkstar leaped but the mouse had already vanished under a bush. Angrily, Darkstar turned to face whatever it was that had alerted the mouse and heard soft pawsteps not very far away. A quiet voice said something that he couldn't quite make out.

Cautious, Darkstar crept towards the other cat or cats and sniffed for scent. The stench he picked up seemed to carry traces of all six clans mixed with the heady scent of decay.

A growl rumbled deep in his throat as he picked his way nearer. The voice stopped speaking and soon after he heard the undergrowth rustle from a distance away. Slightly confused, Darkstar crept forward and found himself in the training clearing. 'The intruders must have left near the stream.' he thought, disappointed that he hadn't caught them. He ran to the far side of the clearing but the rain-soaked ferns made it difficult to find the scent again.

He let out a snarl of annoyance and returned to his hunt. Two squirrels and a vole later, Darkstar was in a better mood and ready to return to camp. His mood improved still further when Shadowlion met him just outside the camp entrance.

"Hey Darkstar."

"Hi Hime." He greeted her, setting his prey on the pile. "What's up?"

"I had Nightshade look me over a while back and she confirmed that I'm pregnant."

"Really?" Darkstar asked, caught somewhere between ecstatic and amazed. "That's awesome!"

Shadowlion purred at his reaction and pressed her cheek against his.

"She also said that she'd tell me when I should move into the nursery segment. That way I can still go on patrols for a while."

"Just be careful. I don't want you to get hurt." Darkstar warned. Shadowlion nodded in agreement, glad that he didn't fuss over the idea too much like Poppyfrost told her Berrynose had.

"Do you want to go hunting again? I know you just got back but the rain is mild and we could always use more prey." Shadowlion asked.

"Sure." Darkstar agreed with a shrug after only a short hesitation at the rain.

The two of them spent the rest of the night hunting before returning to their nest to share tongues.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

Darkstar woke the next evening to find Brighttalon waiting nearby.

"What's up?" Darkstar asked as he stretched.

"One of our patrols found an unfamiliar scent in our territory. It seems like a whole patrol of cats intruded on our territory. Did you see anything last night?"

"I didn't _see_ anything but I did smell a group of cats. I went to explore but they were already gone when I arrived."

"Did you notice any scents in particular?"

"It was raining when I smelled it so the smells blended together. Why? Did you notice someone's scent?"

"I thought I smelled Wildear. And Snowlion. But I couldn't be certain."

"Well, I didn't spend much time in camp last night so I'll ask her about the Dark Forest tonight."

"'Kay. But remember that it's also the full moon tonight. I thought that Wildear, Rabbitpaw, and Duskmist could come with us."

"Alright. We'll bring Nightshade also. And… Dustpaw and Badgerswipe. That way half the clan will still be here."

"D'you want to tell them or should I?"

"It doesn't really matter who tells them. If you want to, you can, I guess." Darkstar said with a shrug.

"I can." Brighttalon agreed. "You could probably talk to Wildear before we have to leave." Darkstar nodded in agreement and went to find his sister while Brighttalon sought out the rest of the Gathering patrol.

"Hey, Wildear?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you know what the Dark Forest was up to last night?"

"Oh! Yeah, I was going to tell you. Tigerstar has decided to explore every clan's territory with a patrol made up of cats from each clan. He wants us to learn as much as we can about fighting in different clan territories. I tried not to tell them too much about Fireclan but I couldn't be too obvious about keeping stuff secret. They still don't know about our night-training."

"Okay. Thanks for keeping some of our secrets."

"Mm-hmm." Wildear nodded in acknowledgement. "And one of the cats from the Riverclan patrol that caught you trying to fish offered to teach me."

"Cool! More ways to get food are always good."

"I thought so too. We'll begin lessons when he can sneak out of camp for it."

"Okay. Oh, and you and Duskmist are going to come to the Gathering, okay?"

"Yeah he still has to tell Mom, doesn't he?"

"I'd forgotten about that but yes, he does."

"Everyone's ready. We should probably head out." Brighttalon said as he appeared at Darkstar's shoulder.

"'Kay." Darkstar acknowledged before standing and leading Wildear and Brighttalon to the front of the camp. As Brighttalon had said, the rest of the patrol was already waiting there. Darkstar lifted his tail as he strode past them and they fell in behind him to walk through Shadowclan's territory to the island.

When Darkstar reached the fallen tree, he saw that Windclan was just beginning to cross so he waved his tail to gesture to Fireclan to wait. As the last Windclanner jumped down onto the island, Darkstar led his clan forward again. Riverclan, Shadowclan, and Winterclan were already waiting there, their cats intermingling to talk. Darkstar followed Onestar to a large oak tree on the far side of the clearing and climbed up to a branch so he could sit next to Silverstar.

"Everyone doing okay?" Darkstar asked, settling down on the wide limb.

"Yeah. Snowlion and her kittens are sharing the nursery with mine."

"Oh, you've had your kits already?"

"Yeah. I have six of them. They're so cute!" Darkstar purred in laughter.

"What are their names?"

"Amberkit, Dovekit, Tigerkit, Rowankit, Gingerkit, and Ryekit. And Snowlion's kits are Quailkit, Kestrelkit, and Owlkit. Does your clan have any kits?"

"Fireclan. And no, not yet. Although Rosethorn, Shadowlion, and Wildear are pregnant."

Thunderclan's arrival cut off their conversation as the cats from Shadowclan, Windclan, and Riverclan turned on the Thunderclan cats with hostility.

"Let the Gathering begin." Blackstar yowled. The cats in the clearing beneath them settled down attentively.

"Thank you, Firestar." Blackstar continued, dipping his head to the Thunderclan leader. "You have followed the wishes of the clans and kept Jayfeather confined to camp until we discover the truth about Flametail's death."

"How will the truth be known?" Spiderleg of Thunderclan called out.

"We are waiting for Starclan to speak." Littlecloud stepped forward to say. He glanced at the cream-furred she-cat pacing in front of him. "It's a difficult situation for us all."

"None of us are comfortable with it." The gray tabby Riverclan medicine cat said as she stood.

Onestar stood to take his turn at addressing the clans. "Windclan has had good hunting over the past moon. We are ready for the coming season."

"We, too." Mistystar nodded. "Greenleaf has filled the lake with fish and there has been no illness in Riverclan."

"Starclan has blessed all the clans this greenleaf." Firestar said with a flick of his tail. "Would you like to report?" He asked Darkstar in a quieter voice.

"Fireclan has settled into our new territory well and our warriors are strong and healthy." Darkstar glanced at Silverstar to let her know he was done.

"Winterclan also has been doing well this past moon. Our nursery has been blessed with two healthy litters."

"Riverclan has had only one concern." Mistystar began again, tipping her head to scan the clan cats below. "There have been traces of rogues and loners appearing in our territory. No cat has been spotted, but there have been strange scents and paw prints. And yet we have found no trails across our scent lines. It's as if the cats simply appeared inside our territories."

"We have also seen signs of rogue intruders." Firestar agreed, his eyes sharp with interest. "They've come at night and we've set up extra patrols, but no cat has actually been seen."

"We've had strange scents, too." Onestar admitted.

"There have been rogues in Shadowclan's forests as well."

"We've also found strange scents." Silverstar acknowledged.

"As have we." Darkstar added. "We suspect that we know who it is also."

"Who do you think it is?" Firestar asked. Mistystar, Onestar, and Blackstar stared at Darkstar. Silverstar also looked over at her friend but not with as much focus as the other leaders.

"Uh...Wow, there's a lot o' you when you're all focusin' on me. Anyway, our suspect is the Dark Forest. They have been making moves that I'm sure we all have noticed."

"The Dark Forest?" Onestar asked.

"How could they be invading our territory?" Blackstar pressed.

"Wildear, would you answer?" The calico she-cat stood up with a nod.

"The Dark Forest cats have been training warriors from every clan in our sleep. They-"

"You're with them?" Blackstar interrupted. The cats from the original four clans turned on her with hostility so Fireclan and Winterclan moved around her defensively.

"Yes, many cats here are. The Dark-"

"Who are they?" Mistystar asked. "Which of our clanmates are traitors?"

"If y'all would shut up, maybe she could finish her report." Darkstar snapped.

"The cats of the Dark Forest have been teaching their apprentices moves from every clan and recently one of their higher-ranking warriors decided that we should see every clan's territory. We've been visiting a different clan's territory each night. That's why there's no scent around the borders."

"What can we do about them?" A black Shadowclan tom asked.

"We should all step up patrols and try to find these patrols." Firestar responded.

"We must stay alert!" a Riverclan warrior yowled.

Firestar pressed on. "And if any clan finds evidence, we must share it with the other clans!"

"We should make a battle plan." Blackstar argued.

"I agree." Silverstar voiced.

"We're stronger side by side." Mistystar added. "We should work together in this battle."

"Thunderclan will join Riverclan in this battle." Firestar agreed.

"Windclan will join the alliance." Onestar let the wind tug at his tail as he spoke.

"We will do what we can to defend you, even if you choose not to join." Firestar said to Blackstar. Blackstar curled his lip at Firestar's assumption.

"My clan will join. But there will be one condition."

"Very well." Firestar pricked his ears.

"On Shadowclan territory, Shadowclan is in charge of any warrior from any clan." He scowled at Firestar. "Even a clan leader."

Firestar nodded. "Okay."

"That'd be a good rule for each clan's territory." Darkstar commented.

"Where do you think the Dark Forest will attack first?" Mistystar asked Wildear.

"They'll go where they think they can cause the most damage." Duskmist answered, standing by his mate.

"Patrols must move through all the territories night and day." Onestar suggested. "There must be no borders to block their way."

Blackstar's eyes glittered. "Enemy patrols moving freely through my territory?"

"We're not enemies now." Firestar reminded him. "I suggest there be one patrol in each territory made up of warriors from all six clans. I'll send three warriors to each of your camps tomorrow."

"So soon?" Mistystar asked.

"We must be prepared." Firestar insisted. "Will you each send three warriors to Thunderclan?"

Mistystar nodded first, followed by Onestar and Blackstar.

"Our clans are still very small. We can't afford to send three cats to every camp." Silverstar said. "I'm afraid I'll only be able to send out one cat to each clan."

"Fireclan can send two cats but we're also too small to send three. And warriors from every clan will have to accept sharing a camp with a fox."

Mistystar swallowed nervously and looked down to her deputy.

"Shadowclan would fight alongside one of the foxes if you're certain that they will loyally fight on the side of the clans." Blackstar flicked his ear.

"As far as I know, neither Pebblefur nor Cloudpaw are training with the Dark Forest." Wildear assured them.

"Windclan has met both of your foxes and would be willing to fight alongside them."

"I'll talk with my warriors and make sure that any I send to your camps are willing to accept the foxes." Firestar promised.

"I can agree to that." Mistystar voiced her opinion.

"How do we know which cats we can trust?" Onestar asked, looking down at the cats assembled below them.

"Until the time of the battle, we should assume that everyone in our clans are loyal. The true traitors will reveal themselves then." Dovewing of Thunderclan stood to respond.

"But what if they tell our plans to their Dark Forest allies?" Blackstar frowned.

"I guess you'll just have to *trust* your clanmates." Snaketail said, sounding annoyed.

"She's right." Firestar agreed. "We have to trust that enough clan cats will remain loyal to make our plans work. Battle patrols must focus on protecting the camps of each clan. Each camp must be defended by warriors from all six clans. We must keep our kits and elders safe."

Onestar flexed his claws. "Once the camps are secure, then we must draw the attackers away."

"We'll need messengers." Blackstar commented. "To share news or offer reinforcements."

"The swiftest two cats from each clan will be messengers." Firestar decided.

"They must swear not to be drawn into battle. They must only carry news. I don't want a camp lost because help doesn't arrive in time."

Blackstar nodded. "Agreed."

"Good." Firestar said, looking past the clan cats to stare into the distance. "Let's go home. Prepare for battle. It will strike everywhere at once, but remember that we are fighting together. Not alone."

Firestar jumped down from the tree to rejoin his clanmates. Mistystar slithered down next, followed by Onestar. Darkstar leaped to the ground next and Silverstar and Blackstar landed at the base of the tree simultaneously.

As Darkstar passed the knot of Winterclan and Fireclan cats, the Fireclanners said goodbye to their Winterclan friends and joined him, Brighttalon, and Nightshade. He ran across the fallen tree and led his clan back toward home.

"How'd it go?" Shadowlion asked as Darkstar led the patrol into the camp.

"We were talking battle tactics."

"Oh?"

"It seems the Dark Forest warriors have been visiting every clan's territories. So we were discussing how to respond to the coming battle. Tomorrow I'm going to send two warriors to each clan camp. Thunderclan, Windclan, Riverclan, and Shadowclan will each send three cats to our camp and Winterclan will send one."

"Winterclan's no smaller than us." Shadowlion commented questioningly.

"Yeah. But three of their cats are elders and I'd also be reluctant to send Hazelwood, Spruceheart, or Frostpelt to another clan to fight."

"That makes sense. Who do you plan on sending?"

"I'm not sure yet. I also need to think about which two clanmates are the fastest that we can spare from fighting. We each agreed to send the two fastest as messengers."

"Dustpaw and Rabbitpaw aren't necessarily the fastest but we could manage without them fighting. And I'm sure that they could be fast enough to carry messages."

"Alright. So Dustpaw and Rabbitpaw will be our messengers. I think I'll send Sandpelt to Winterclan. And Duskmist."

"Blackhawk and Dawnbranch could go to Riverclan. They're both pretty good at fighting in and out of water."

"Maybe Crimsonclaw to Thunderclan and Embershade to Shadow."

"Badgerswipe works well alongside Embershade when they're training. She could go to Shadowclan with her."

"I think I'll send Brighttalon to Thunderclan with Crimsonclaw."

"And Cloudpaw and I could go to Windclan." Darkstar's ears twitched in concern but he knew that Shadowlion had been pregnant the least amount of time out of Fireclan's three queens.

"Okay. Thanks for your help." Darkstar purred.

"No problem." Shadowlion acknowledged. Darkstar stood to address all of his clanmates.

"Everyone should try to get some sleep tonight. Tomorrow morning, most of you will be going to other clan camps and, as far as I know, none of them intentionally keep their warriors up all night."

"There is skullcap if anyone needs the extra help." Nightshade added, standing next to her stores.

All of the Fireclan warriors settled down into their nests but as Darkstar was trying to drift into sleep, he heard some of his clanmates reclaim their paws to ask Nightshade about the skullcap.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

Shadowlion shoved Darkstar awake when the sun was still low in the sky. He was going to complain but she pointed her nose to a spot just outside camp where Brighttalon was talking to six unfamiliar cats. Not quite unfamiliar- Darkstar recognized Rosepetal and the black-striped silver tom from Thunderclan.

"The Shadowclan cats and the Thunderclan cats are here." Shadowlion hissed.

"Thanks." Darkstar murmured, standing to join Brighttalon. She nodded in acknowledgement and left to make sure the rest of the clan were awake.

"-Sending out patrols when the other three groups arrive." Brighttalon was saying when Darkstar reached them. "While you're waiting, you can help yourself to the prey pile or get acquainted with my clanmates."

"Will you not be here?" Rosepetal asked.

"No, I'll be going to your camp with Crimsonclaw." Brighttalon waved his tail behind him, presumably at Crimsonclaw.

"Ah, okay." Rosepetal said in acknowledgement before entering the camp with her clanmates.

"Welcome to our camp." Darkstar said in greeting as they passed him.

"Thank you." The dark gray Thunderclan she-cat responded. "I'm Cinderheart."

"Darkstar." He introduced himself.

"You've met my clanmates before, I believe."

"Yeah. I know Rosepetal by name but I never learned yours." Darkstar said to the tom.

"Bumblestripe." He supplied.

"It's nice to meet each of you. I need to speak to my deputy so I'll talk to you later."

Cinderheart dipped her head in agreement and led Rosepetal and Bumblestripe away.

"Brighttalon?"

"Yeah?"

"Did Shadowlion tell you which cats I wanted to go where?"

"Yeah, she did."

"Would you mind sending them off before you go? I can greet the cats from other clans as they come."

"Sure. I told the Thunderclan and Shadowclan cats that you'd send out patrols as soon as the next three clans get here."

"Alright. Thanks." Brighttalon nodded and set off to find the other cats who would be leaving camp. Darkstar took up Brighttalon's position in front of the camp and waited.

Moonleap arrived with three Windclan cats just after Brighttalon took the rest of the Fireclan patrols away and the Riverclan group found Fireclan's camp a little before sunhigh.

As soon as the Riverclan cats came in, Darkstar climbed to the top of the camp.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather in front of the camp for a clan meeting."

Rosethorn, Wildear, Nightshade, Dustpaw, and Rabbitpaw led the strangers out to the front of the camp to sit where Darkstar could see them.

"Fireclan cats have been living in two groups since we came here. Half of us train and hunt during the night while the rest sleep and at dawn, the two groups switch places. I'd planned on changing which cats got to train during the night after yesterday's Gathering but the threat from the Dark Forest upset things. Instead half of you will train in the night with Rosethorn, Wildear, and Rabbitpaw and the other half will train during the day with me, Dustpaw, and Nightshade. Is there anyone who has a preference on when they train?"

"Riverclan cats are more used to training during the day." Grasspelt called out. "We're more comfortable that way."

"Then it'd be a good idea to get used to fighting in the dark. Not all of your enemies will attack when it's light. However, if you're sure you'd rather stick with training in daylight, you can."

"I'll train at night." Petalfur volunteered.

"I think I'll try that also." Mosspelt agreed.

After the Riverclan cats were settled, the other cats spoke fast and loud, trying to voice their decisions above the cats around them.

"Quiet!" Darkstar yowled. "The cats who want to train at night, stand next to Rosethorn. The ones who want to train during the day, stand next to Nightshade." As Darkstar spoke, Rosethorn moved over to his left and Nightshade moved over to his right.

When the shuffle of movement ceased, Nightshade had Rosepetal, Cinderheart, Sunstrike, Sedgewhisker, Swallowtail, Grasspelt, and Moonleap and Rosethorn had Petalfur, Mosspelt, Ratscar, Applefur, Owlclaw, and Bumblestripe.

"Sedgewhisker, Swallowtail, and Sunstrike, would one of you mind training during the night? I think that there should be at least one cat from each clan in each group. That way, whatever is learned in either group can be shared with your clanmates. Ratscar, Applefur, and Owlclaw, would one of you also switch?"

Both groups of three cats talked amongst themselves for a little while before addressing the rest of the cats.

"Shadowclan are used to training in the night. Applefur and I will train with the daylight group." Ratscar decided.

"Similar to what Ratscar said, Windclan are used to training during the day. Sedgewhisker and I can try training in the night." Swallowtail added. The cats switched places so that they were with their training group.

"The cats who will be training through the night should try to get some sleep. Nightshade and Dustpaw, watch over camp. I'll show the rest of you around the territory so as to make future patrols easier." Darkstar jumped to the ground as Rosethorn's group returned to camp. She and Wildear settled the newcomers into nests while Darkstar gathered his seven cats and took off into the forest.

Darkstar listened to them running behind him as he approached the Thunderclan border. Once he reached it, he lifted his tail to signal them to stop.

"This is where Fireclan territory meets Thunderclan's. It's a fairly straight line from here down to the lake. We're going in the opposite direction." He began running alongside the border and the other cats followed close behind.

"Isn't there a greenleaf twolegplace up here?" Cinderheart asked quietly. Darkstar nodded but didn't respond verbally.

They reached the campground not long after that and Darkstar turned to address the assembled cats again.

"Twolegs often stay here during greenleaf so we will have to be cautious about that until the colder weather comes in. As you can see, none are here now but someone will check here each morning. Some of my clanmates were talking about using this as a leaf-bare training ground but we haven't been able to try that out yet." Darkstar continued his run toward the creek and led them across the twoleg bridge and further, to the Shadowclan border.

"Fireclan territory and Shadowclan territory meet here. The border continues down to the lake where it ends on a half-bridge." Darkstar informed them. Then he spoke directly to the Shadowclan cats. "Is the half-bridge Shadowclan territory or Fireclan?"

Ratscar and Applefur glanced at each other before Applefur spoke. "I would say that it's Shadowclan's but you'll have to talk about that with Blackstar."

"Alright. That makes sense. Thanks." Darkstar led them a little deeper in Fireclan territory until he reached the twoleg path. Then he ran down toward the lake. As soon as he was close enough to see the waves lapping at the beach where the wind had ruffled the surface, Darkstar turned and raced parallel to the water's edge until he came to the creek.

"Do we have to run everywhere?" Grasspelt panted.

"I was a boy when I learned how to run." Darkstar responded, a teasing smile tugging at the corner of his lip. Sunstrike laughed aloud.

"You can't be tired already, Grasspelt?" Sunstrike asked.

"Not every cat is as used to fleeing as Windclan." Grasspelt hissed, annoyed.

"Windclan flees from _no one_!" Sunstrike growled, bristling her fur at the brown tabby.

"Enough you two." Darkstar said, stepping between them. "We all need to get along for the next few days until the danger from the Dark Forest isn't quite so immediate." Both of them stepped back, their ears flat in embarrassment.

"If it's a problem, we can walk the rest of the way." Darkstar said to Grasspelt.

"No. I'm fine." He muttered.

Darkstar nodded in acknowledgement and led the group across the creek before running alongside it back in the direction of camp. It wasn't until he reached the clearing at the bend in the creek that Darkstar stopped again.

"This is our usual training area. Our new apprentices are brought here to learn hunting crouches and we all spar here sometimes. Everyone will eventually be put into a training group to practice battle moves here. This is also the first place I found the scent of intruders from the Dark Forest."

Darkstar chose to walk through the narrow stretch of woods between the training ground and camp. Darkstar stood next to the camp entrance to talk to his patrol again.

"Sunstrike, would you be able to find the cam- greenleaf twolegplace again?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Would you mind hunting around there? I didn't have time to send out hunting patrols before my clanmates had to leave." Sunstrike nodded and took off in the direction of the campsite.

"Cinderheart, do you want to hunt in the training ground?"

"Alright." The dark gray she-cat answered before going back the way they came.

"Rosepetal and Ratscar, will you two hunt along your borders?" They both nodded and left.

"Where can I hunt?" Applefur asked.

"Along the lakeside?" Darkstar offered. The mottled brown she-cat nodded and ran in that direction.

"Grasspelt, will the creek offer adequate fishing?"

"It should." Grasspelt responded. "If not, I'll move down to the lakeside."

"Alright. Thanks." Grasspelt nodded and vanished into the undergrowth.

"Will you hunt along the twoleg path, Moonleap?" Darkstar asked the last cat remaining.

"Sure." Moonleap agreed before also leaving.

After the undergrowth settled from Moonleap's departure, Darkstar poked his head into camp to check on Nightshade, Dustpaw, and the sleeping group.

"Everything okay?" Darkstar whispered. Nightshade picked her way between the nests to speak easier to her leader.

"It took a while for them to get to sleep and I need to replenish my stores. I'm completely out of skullcap and could use more willow bark and plantain leaves."

"I sent my entire group out to hunt and had planned on joining them."

"When will I next be able to gather supplies?" She asked, her tailtip twitching.

"As soon as some of the hunters come back." Darkstar answered. Nightshade flattened her ears but also nodded.

"Fine. But I'm blaming you if any of these cats come to me for a sleep aid."

"Sounds fair." Darkstar agreed. "Someone should be back before long."


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

Nightshade felt a breeze ruffle her fur and looked up. She was mildly surprised to see Starclan's territory stretching out before her, more so to see that it was deep into leaf-fall.

As Nightshade stood and looked around, a shout from behind caught her attention. She swung around and saw Jayfeather, Littlecloud, and a ginger tomcat and a tortoiseshell and white she-cat that she didn't recognize.

"Come with us!" Jayfeather called, running past. Nightshade raced to catch up with them and fell in behind Littlecloud as they continued their journey.

"There he is!" The tortoiseshell yowled as they crashed through a thick swath of gorse and onto a rocky plateau. She scrambled to a stop beside Kestrelflight. "We need to talk to you!"

"What's going on?" Kestrelflight asked.

"We need Willowshine and Snaketail!" The tortoiseshell said as Littlecloud and the ginger tom caught up. "Is that Riverclan land down there?"

"There's no need to go there." Willowshine said, walking up behind them. "I saw you and wondered what you were doing." She stared at Jayfeather. "Are you here because of Mothwing? She said you'd visited Riverclan today."

"Yes." Jayfeather said breathlessly. "There was a sign for me."

Willowshine nodded. "That's why she told me to share dreams with Starclan tonight. I thought it was strange. She doesn't usually mention Starclan."

Nightshade looked around as the other medicine cats began to fade.

"The sun is rising over the lake! The medicine cats are leaving us." The tortoiseshell gazed at the ginger tom. "Quick, tell them!"

"What about Snaketail?" Jayfeather asked.

"She's not coming tonight." Nightshade told him.

"Jayfeather didn't kill me!" The ginger tom blurted out to the other cats. "I drowned. Jayfeather was trying to save me. But I was too heavy and the current was too strong. My death was not his fault!"

"Thank you, Flametail." Jayfeather dipped his head to the orange tom. "You have fulfilled your destiny." Looking at her paws, Nightshade saw that they were nearly transparent.

"Let's meet at the Moonpool tomorrow." Jayfeather suggested.

"Yes!" Kestrelflight called.

"I'll be there!" Willowshine promised.

"Me too!" Littlecloud's voice was faint as he vanished.

"I'll come." Nightshade agreed, not sure if she actually said it before she left or if she just thought it before waking.

Nightshade opened her eyes in time to hear Wildear yowl.

"She's giving birth." Dustpaw hissed at Nightshade, his eyes wide in uncertainty.

"Okay. Get Duskmist. Moonleap, get me a solid stick for her to bite on." Nightshade ordered, jumping over the puddle of water to Wildear's side.

"Duskmist will be coming soon." Nightshade soothed Wildear. Wildear panted with her teeth bared but nodded to acknowledge Nightshade's words. Another yowl of pain ripped from Wildear's throat.

"This will be a first time for us both but I'm certain that you'll be fine. From what I understand, your body will tell you when to push and I'll be here to welcome your kittens and clean them off." Wildear nodded a few times and snatched at the stick Moonleap set in her nest.

Duskmist arrived in the Fireclan camp, out of breath and panting hard, just as Nightshade was cleaning Wildear's third kitten, another calico.

"Good, you're here." Nightshade greeted him. "Keep her calm. Talk names or something."

The stick crackled as Wildear bit down heavily on it. Another spasm heralded the arrival of a fourth kitten. Nightshade waited as Wildear forced out a small, dark gray tomkit. Nightshade bent to pick him up so she could wash his birthing sac off.

"Your son waited for you." Nightshade joked, setting the newborn kitten beside his sisters. "He looks just like you." Duskmist blinked and a soft smile spread across his face as he looked down at his four kits.

"There's one more." Wildear hissed at them. Nightshade moved back to where she was so she could catch the last kitten. The fifth kit turned out to be a dark tortoiseshell she-kit.

Once Wildear and her kittens were comfortably settled in their nest with Duskmist curled around them, Nightshade quietly slipped out of camp.

"Rosepetal!" She called, seeing the cream-furred she-cat heading out. Rosepetal turned in response. "Do you know where Darkstar is?"

"He, Applefur, and Sunstrike are at the training ground."

"Thank you!" Nightshade called, running in the indicated direction. She heard the tell-tale noises of battle before she broke through the undergrowth. The three cats stopped in surprise as she crashed into the clearing.

"Darkstar, I need to go to the Moonpool. Duskmist, Dustpaw, Wildear, and Moonleap are still in camp."

"Duskmist? I thought he was at Winterclan's camp."

"Wildear gave birth. He came back. I need to go, I'll see you tonight." Nightshade ran off again before Darkstar could respond.

When Nightshade reached the Moonpool, she was mildly surprised and relieved to see that Jayfeather was the only cat there.

"No one else get here yet?" She panted, picking her way down.

"If they're even coming." Jayfeather said pessimistically.

"They said they would." Nightshade reminded him. Kestrelflight arrived next, seeming rather irritated.

The three of them waited anxiously for the others and just as Nightshade was beginning to think they wouldn't show up, Willowshine arrived with a cloud of scattered rocks.

"Watch out!" Kestrelflight yowled, jumping away as the stones landed around him.

"Sorry!" Willowshine called as she and Snaketail wound down the path into the hollow.

"Willowshine, is that you?" Jayfeather asked.

"Snaketail too." Willowshine informed him. "Mothwing sends good wishes."

"Why didn't you wait for us by the stream?" Kestrelflight asked Jayfeather.

"I wasn't sure you'd come." Jayfeather answered.

"We told you we would be here." Littlecloud said as he too arrived.

"I've had to leave a camp full of sneezing warriors." Kestrelflight admitted, his fur fluffed out. "The first cold of leaf-bare has brought sickness."

"Anything serious?" Littlecloud asked.

"Nothing more than runny noses and a cough or two." Kestrelflight said acknowledged. "I've left Whitetail in charge of the herb store. She knows how to treat a sore throat."

"Perhaps it's time you took on an apprentice?" Willowshine asked.

"Kestrelflight won't need an apprentice if the Dark Forest destroys us!" Jayfeather snapped.

"Awfully dramatic." Nightshade noted, shaking the cold out of her pelt.

"I believe we can defeat them." Snaketail said, standing next to Nightshade.

"How will we know which clanmates to trust to fight on our side?" Willowshine asked. Snaketail twitched her tail and opened her mouth angrily so Nightshade pressed her side against Snaketail's to calm her. Snaketail was clearly still irritated at Willowshine but she closed her mouth to let the younger cat speak.

"The only way we can know is by seeing which cats choose to fight alongside their living clanmates when the time comes. Not every cat who's training in the Place of No Stars will betray their clan." Nightshade said calmly.

"I do want to pass a request though." Snaketail said, more peaceably. "If anyone gets the chance, kill Brokenstar. He has threatened a punishment worse than death to those of us who betray the Dark Forest. With him gone, your clanmates who have been training with us will feel more confident about fighting on your side."

"Starclan will protect and guide us." Willowshine said, though she seemed nervous.

"Starclan is divided." Kestrelflight reminded her.

Jayfeather curled his claws into the stone. "They're more scared than we are," he murmured.

"How can we fight the Dark Forest alone?" Willowshine asked, her breath quickening.

"Flametail united us." Jayfeather declared. "Now I will unite Starclan."

"How?" Littlecloud asked with a sharp flick of his tail tip.

"I'll let them see the danger for themselves!" Jayfeather turned and touched his nose tip to the Moonpool. The rest of the cats followed his example, drifting quickly to sleep.

When Nightshade's eyes opened next, she was standing with the rest of the medicine cats on a grassy hilltop.

"Where's the sun gone?" Willowshine asked, looking around.

"Now what?" Littlecloud asked Jayfeather.

"Each of you must go to your own ancestors and bring them here."

Willowshine, Kestrelflight, and Littlecloud each looked to the territories most similar to their own while Nightshade caught Snaketail's eye.

"Can you do it?" Jayfeather asked, turning to locate the Thunderclan-like area.

"I'll bring every cat I can find." Littlecloud promised, walking down the hillside. Kestrelflight broke into a run toward the moorland. Jayfeather turned around to face the three cats who were hanging behind.

"Will the Dark Forest warriors come here, too?" Willowshine asked, her tail swishing nervously.

"We won't let them." Jayfeather flattened his ears.

Willowshine flashed him an anxious look and began to trot down to the river.

"What should we do?" Nightshade asked. "We have no ancestors yet, thankfully."

"Find any cats you can. Bring them here." Jayfeather instructed. Nightshade and Snaketail both nodded before Jayfeather began running toward the oak forest.

"I'll see you later." Nightshade said, deciding which direction to go. She eventually chose to go somewhere between the area Littlecloud took and the direction Willowshine claimed. She was only walking for a short while before she found a Starclan cat.

"Sunfish!" Nightshade called, hurrying to reach her. Sunfish spun around in response to her name

"Nightshade? It can't be half-moon yet."

"We're uniting Starclan. Everyone's meeting at the top of the hill back there." Nightshade told her, gesturing with her tail.

"Starclan can't see the clans anymore." Sunfish admitted after a slight hesitation. "We don't know what to do."

"Jayfeather's planning something. We need to bring as many cats as we can."

"This is insane." Sunfish murmured but hope flickered in her eyes. "Let's see if it's insane enough to work. I'll come with you."

"Thank you, Sunfish."

"Wait here." She instructed. "I'll be right back." Sunfish ran a short way into Shadowclan's land talked to a group of cats there. When she returned she was followed by four other cats; a gray and white tomcat, a thick-furred gray and ginger she-cat, a snub-nosed orange tabby she-cat, a brown tomcat, and Lavenderflame. Lavenderflame's fur was brushing against the gray and white tomcat's side

"Nightshade, this is my son Pickerelpelt." Sunfish brushed her tailtip against the gray and white cat's shoulder. "His mate, Lavenderflame." Lavenderflame blinked affectionately at Nightshade. "Lavenderflame's sister, Silverflame." The gray and ginger she-cat nodded. "Silverflame's daughter, Brightflower." The orange she-cat lifted her tail in greeting. "And Brightflower's son, Nutwhisker."

"It's nice to meet you." The brown tom said.

"Hello, I'm Nightshade of Fireclan. The medicine cats from each clan are collecting as many cats as we can find. Starclan shouldn't be divided like this."

"We'll join the Gathering soon but first, Pickerelpelt deserves to know who you are." Lavenderflame decided. Pickerelpelt glanced at his mate in question so she continued speaking. "Pickerelpelt, this is our daughter; Splashkit."

Pickerelpelt blinked and walked around Nightshade, examining her closely.

"How is this possible?" He asked, standing beside her.

"We found willing host bodies for the kittens your brother killed. We found a different way for them to live." Sunfish answered. Nightshade realized that she could be angry again at Sunfish referring to them as willing but seeing Pickerelpelt here in front of her, his eyes wide in wonder as he looked at his now full-grown daughter, Nightshade couldn't cause him pain like that.

"Splashkit's helped me a lot in ways I didn't understand until Sunfish explained things to me." Nightshade said. "We've helped each other."

"What about Vulturekit? Is he with you?

"Vulturekit was my brother?" Nightshade asked. Pickerelpelt nodded. "He goes by Darkstar now. He's my leader." 'He should be here with me.'

"We need to go." Nutwhisker reluctantly interrupted them. "Quite a large group is convening on that hilltop."

"Right." Nightshade agreed. "Thanks." As Nightshade ran back towards the hill, Pickerelpelt ran on her left and Lavenderflame stuck to her right.

Nightshade and her family found the middle of the group last. Jayfeather nodded to acknowledge her and stood tall to address the gathered cats.

"Starclan!" He yowled, stepping forward. "Listen!"

"Why?" A ragged gray she-cat yowled. "We have the wisdom of ages. You have the stupidity of youth!"

"You can leave if you want to!" A long-furred, bright ginger tomcat hissed at her. The she-cat flattened her ears but didn't respond.

"You must listen to me!" Jayfeather called. "Yellowfang's right. I'm younger than any of you." He paused, then corrected himself. "Younger than most of you. There is a terrible threat to you all! And to the clans you once lived in. You know the Dark Forest is rising. You can see it in the dead leaves that litter your hunting ground, and the clouds that block out your sun." He lifted his gaze to the gray, clouded sky. "You must face the truth. And the truth is worse than you ever imagined. The Dark Forest must be met and fought. You will not win by huddling together like families of mice. You must stand together or fall divided!"

"But how can we beat an enemy that can bring leaf-bare to Starclan?" A large dark brown tabby tom called.

"They have grown stronger than us." A black she-cat added.

"When we sent you the Prophecy of the Three, we didn't know the Dark Forest would grow so powerful." The ginger tom who had spoken earlier padded forward to speak again.

"But now they are _Four_!" A majestic blue-gray she-cat insisted. "The Ancients gave them an ally to make them strong enough to fight any enemy."

Jayfeather ruffled his pelt. "We don't know who it is yet."

"Isn't it obvious?" The she-cat asked, tipping her head to the side. "You are not the first cats guided by a prophecy. I was promised long ago that fire would save the clan. It has never needed saving as much as it does now." She nodded at the smaller gray tabby. "Get him." She said softly. "He needs to know what is happening."

Jayfeather immediately turned and darted away. His form faded and vanished as he reached the bottom of the hill.

Nightshade looked up at the gray she-cat questioningly.

"Now we wait for them." She stated, sitting down and gazing in the direction Jayfeather ran.

Jayfeather appeared abruptly not very much later with Firestar beside him.

"You must follow me once more," Jayfeather yowled. "You need to see for yourselves." He waved his tail and led the assembly down the slope into a dingy forest where slimy bushes choked the tree roots and the light was a thin, sickly green.

"How can any warrior live in such darkness?" Someone muttered.

"It smells foul." Brightflower complained.

Jayfeather's ears pricked as a battle cry echoed through the forest. "Look."

Nightshade turned her eyes in the direction Jayfeather indicated and saw dark pelts flit through the dank fog. Agonized cries rose and fell in the heavy air. Then one voice rasped louder than the others.

"Hook your claws into her spine and go for her throat!" A thick-furred tortoiseshell and white she-cat loomed suddenly in front of them. She didn't seem to notice the watching Starclan cats as she aimed a heavy blow at a scrawny tom's ear, sending him reeling.

A dark brown tom with a crooked tail stalked from the trees. "Hasn't Shredtail mastered the death blow yet?" He scowled at the scrawny tabby as he tried to wipe blood from his nose. Then he sank his claws into a smaller tortoiseshell's pelt and yanked her to her paws. "If your opponent wasn't so useless, you'd be ripped to shreds by now. I want as many clan cats dead as there are birds in the forest!"

"Where's the sun?" A Starclan kit whimpered.

A white-furred queen wrapped her tail over her. "Hush, little one!"

Creeping silently through the forest, the Starclan cats followed the trail back to their territory.

"We're back!" The kitten who had complained before now exclaimed as she scampered onto the grassy slope. "Why did you take us to see those horrible cats?" She asked Jayfeather.

"We have to know our enemy." The blue-gray she-cat said, brushing the kit's head with her muzzle.

"Now that you have seen them, have heard what they are threatening our clans with, are you afraid to fight?"

"Never!" The dark brown tabby tom bristled.

"But will you fight together?" Jayfeather questioned.

"We can't fight such cruelty while we're divided." The blue-gray cat swished her tail.

"How will we know who to trust?" The ragged-furred she-cat stepped forward to ask.

"You can trust me." Firestar told her. "And one another."

"How could such horror have thrived?" The brown tabby growled. "We should have been able to crush it before it grew so strong. After all, we have the power of the stars in our paws."

"No." Jayfeather disagreed steadily. "That is my destiny. Mine and Firestar's."

Firestar nodded. "I am the fourth cat. The prophecy has come true."

With that declaration, Nightshade found herself waking up next to the Moonpool.

"Starclan is united." Jayfeather stated. "Now we must return to our camps and prepare for battle."

(There is a Facebook page for this story at pages/One-Step-Further-A-Warriors-Fanfiction/669456403118130?ref=hl )


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

Darkstar yawned and stretched to wake himself up.

'Where is everyone?' He wondered as he looked around the mostly empty camp. Only six nests still had cats sleeping inside them and he was the only one in camp awake. It wasn't until Darkstar's gaze came to the nursery that he grew worried. Wildear and Duskmist were gone but their two-day-old kits were huddled in the nest.

Darkstar ran to the nearest cat and shook Cinderheart awake.

"Do you know what's going on?" He asked. She sat up quickly and looked around.

"I don't. Should I send Rabbitpaw to Thunderclan or Shadowclan for help?"

"Yes. The Thunderclan camp is closer. I'm going to look around the territory."

Cinderheart nodded and went to wake the apprentice. Darkstar left camp and checked for scents. There were many stale scents from cats going in and out often but he only found one scent recent enough to have been earlier this morning. He followed the trail as quickly as he could without losing it and soon found Nightshade.

"Darkstar." She greeted him with obvious relief. "There were so many cats gone and I thought I'd try to find them."

"Then we're out here for the same reason. Keep looking, I'm going to check on the opposite side of the camp." He pointed with his tail toward the lake.

Darkstar and Nightshade searched until well after sunhigh before returning to camp and Darkstar was disappointed to find that the cats he had trained alongside were still absent. However, Rabbitpaw was waiting in the middle of camp with five new warriors, including Brighttalon.

"Some of Thunderclan's cats are missing too." Rabbitpaw reported. "Dovewing said she could hear all the way to the Dark Forest." His whiskers twitched in disbelief but he continued. "She said that that's where all the missing cats are. The battle is today."

"'Kay." Darkstar said in acknowledgement, his mind racing over everything that needed to be done. "Rosethorn!" He called to the pregnant queen.

"Yeah?" She asked from where she was laying in Wildear's nest.

"Take some warriors and carry Wildear's litter to the nearest tunnel entrance. You and the kits are going to hide. Brighttalon, stay with her. If any enemies get too close to your hiding place, lure them away to fight." The silver tom nodded and led three other volunteers back to help Rosethorn carry the kittens.

"Hollyleaf, do you have any medical knowledge?" Darkstar continued after Rosethorn's group left.

"I trained under Leafpool for a little while." She answered.

"Great. Help Nightshade prepare her supplies. I want the remedies to be ready when cats need them." Nightshade and Hollyleaf acknowledged his order and went straight to work.

"Rabbitpaw, stay in camp in case we need you. The rest of you, go hunt but don't stray too far from camp. We'll all want to be well-fed but I can't risk leaving the camp very unguarded." Graystripe led Bumblestripe and Troutstream out and Darkstar followed close behind.

Darkstar had only caught a thrush and a squirrel before returning to camp but having it so empty was like an itch he couldn't reach. He was glad, upon returning, to see that Cinderheart, Sedgewhisker, and Oakfur had already gotten back from dropping off Brighttalon, Rosethorn, and the kits.

"The three of you can go hunting if you'd like but stay close." He offered, setting his measly catch next to the rain puddle. They all nodded but only Sedgewhisker left.

"Rabbitpaw?" Darkstar called. The young tom immediately sat up. "Would you bring the squirrel to Brighttalon and Rosethorn?"

"Sure." He agreed before grabbing the squirrel and leaving camp at a run. Bumblestripe returned to camp next, carrying a fat vole and two mice. As soon as he arrived, Cinderheart left to hunt. With a flick of her tail, Nightshade sent Hollyleaf to get food for them both. Hollyleaf snatched the mice and hurried to return to work.

Troutstream entered camp with Rabbitpaw. They each held a fair-sized fish and Troutstream also had a shrew. Oakfur stood and left before they could set the prey on the pile.

"You three can take your share." Darkstar offered. "Nightshade and Hollyleaf have theirs."

"Thanks." Bumblestripe responded as he took the thrush. Troutstream reclaimed one of the fish and shared it with Rabbitpaw. Darkstar carried the vole to his nest and nibbled at it while he waited for the last four cats to return from their hunts.

Sedgewhisker returned next with Cinderheart close behind and they dropped their prey on the pile before grabbing a meal for themselves. It took a while before Graystripe came back and even longer for Oakfur. The sun was beginning to set by the time Oakfur finished his meal.

Tension prickled Darkstar's pelt as they waited for the enemy to arrive, every cat abnormally quiet. It was because of this quiet that Darkstar heard the pound of many paws approaching as soon as he did.

"They're here." He stated, standing to face them. Darkstar felt the cats move forward, closing ranks around him.

"Darkstar." A familiar voice called quietly. Darkstar waited silently for the hidden tomcat to continue. Moonleap crept cautiously out from the bush beside the camp entrance. He licked his lips nervously and looked around. "The Dark Forest cats took us all to the Place of No Stars. They expect us to fight with them. They're coming now. Yellowtail sent us ahead to draw you out."

"Who all do you have with you?" Darkstar asked. Moonleap flicked his tail and several other clan cats followed him equally warily into view. Darkstar looked over them and noticed that all the cats that had vanished last night were now gathered in front of him. Wildear wove her way to the front, Duskmist beside her.

"Where are my kittens? Are they safe?"

"Yeah. Yeah, they're safe. Rosethorn and Brighttalon are hiding with them. Come on in, all of you." Darkstar stood aside and gestured with his tail for the rest of the cats in camp to do the same. They did so, but only with varying degrees of reluctance. "Every cat who trained in the Dark Forest should find a partner you trust to stay near during the fighting. The way I understand it is that anyone who turned against the Dark Forest was threatened with death and I've no intention of letting that happen."

The two groups of cats mingled and conversed and finally settled back into position. Most of them partnered with their own clanmates but Bumblestripe was standing next to Swallowtail, Applefur and Petalfur stayed close, Hollyleaf was with Owlclaw, Nightshade and Moonleap were together, and Cinderheart was next to Mosspelt. Darkstar flicked his tail at Wildear and Duskmist to summon them to his side.

"I want to be able to help you. I know you both are good fighters but I think it'll be easier for me to concentrate if I can see that you're safe." Wildear nodded in agreement.

"We'll try to stay in sight." She promised, her tail flicking nervously. "The Dark Forest cats are expecting us to draw you out. They plan on waiting until you're in sight to attack."

Darkstar lifted his tail as a signal to the clan cats and slowly moved forward. Only after the last cats left the camp did Darkstar hear the enemies again. A brown tabby tom stepped forward to face Darkstar as many other Dark Forest cats showed themselves. The tabby was flanked by a white she-cat with a gray tabby tail and a tall, long-limbed black and white tom. The Dark Forest cats had mostly encircled the group. Only Nightshade and Moonleap's proximity to the camp entrance prevented them from completing the circle and even with that, a small mottled brown tabby she-cat stood on top of the log.

"Hello Duskmist." The tabby-tailed she-cat greeted him.

"Pouncepool." Duskmist responded with a nod.

"You seem to be on the wrong side." She observed.

"I have kits to protect." He answered.

"If you two are done chatting, maybe we can fight?" The brown tabby tom snapped at Pouncepool.

"Go ahead, Sharpstar. I've nothing left to say to the traitor." Pouncepool replied. The tabby, Sharpstar, leaped at Darkstar and Darkstar reared up to meet him.

As Darkstar and Sharpstar fought, Darkstar noticed Pouncepool and Duskmist talking some more but a heavy blow from Sharpstar distracted him before he could hear what they were saying. Darkstar wrapped his paws around Sharpstar's shoulders and tossed him aside. This gave Darkstar just enough time to look around for his sister. A flash of panic stopped him when he found that he couldn't see her. Sharpstar lunged at Darkstar again with a snarl but Darkstar successfully dodged.

"I'm done." Darkstar told him, turning his head to try searching for Wildear again. Sharpstar swiped a paw at Darkstar and Darkstar stepped out of reach. "I'm done fighting you. I'm _bored_. You're _boring_ me."

"You don't get to decide that." Sharpstar insisted.

"It's decided." Darkstar said. "Bye!"

Darkstar jumped over a fighting pair and wove between several others until he was able to climb onto the camp log. Scanning the fighting cats, Darkstar saw Wildear slipping past an Oregon grape bush. Right next to a mostly white Dark Forest tomcat.

Darkstar crouched to leap down so he could reach her but someone else attacked him from behind. Darkstar turned to see a starved-looking blue-gray tom with blue eyes.

They traded blows for a while before the Dark Forest cat knocked Darkstar off the log. Darkstar huffed as he landed and tried to catch his breath to fight again but yet another cat clawed at his shoulders before he could. Darkstar looked at his newest attacker and was infuriated to see Ratscar of Shadowclan.

Darkstar's anger helped lift him to his paws to respond to the attack. With fast, sharp blows, Darkstar drove Ratscar back until they reached another clan cat. Ratscar's eyes opened wider in alarm when he crashed into the other cat and he spun around to face Oakfur.

"What are you two doing?" Oakfur snapped at them. "The enemy's over there!"

Darkstar waited silently for Ratscar to answer.

"I-" Ratscar began, his ears flat. "I, um-" He twisted, alternating his gaze between Darkstar and Oakfur.

"There you are, Ratscar!" Rosepetal landed in front of Ratscar, right in between Oakfur and Darkstar. "Come on. Let's show these crow-food-eaters that they can't get away with threatening us." Ratscar blinked gratefully at the Thunderclan she-cat and joined her in attacking a faded speckled gray she-cat from the Dark Forest.

After they left, Oakfur focused his gaze on Darkstar.

"He wasn't sure which side he was on." Darkstar explained. "It doesn't matter anymore; he's chosen." Oakfur nodded and they both rejoined the battle.

Darkstar reared up and struck at a mottled brown tabby tom's muzzle. The enemy tom reared to reciprocate and Oakfur dove beneath his paws only to stand suddenly, knocking the enemy away. The mottled tom hissed at them and leaped toward Oakfur. The two of them tumbled a little ways, fighting to be on top, before Darkstar could reach them. When he did, Darkstar smacked the other tom off of Oakfur's back with a heavy blow.

Before the Dark Forest tom could regain his paws, Darkstar pounced on him and bit the flesh between his shoulder blades. A pale silver she-cat with black stripes crashed into Darkstar from the side, wrenching him off her ally. Both Dark Forest cats approached Darkstar, their hackles raised. Darkstar slowly retreated, watching his enemies closely. He felt a moment of relief when Oakfur stepped up beside him but it was tempered by alarm when his tail pressed against the side of the log.

'You don't belong here.' Darkstar thought coldly, a slow fury burning in him as his clanmates fought against the intruders. Darkstar took a step forward, his fur bristling also. Oakfur followed, staying beside him as they took their turn approaching. Darkstar flicked his tail and Oakfur leapt at the same time as Darkstar.

The two clan cats reared onto their hind legs and their claws flashed as they dealt vicious blows against the Dark Forest cats. The enemies tried first to fight back but either Darkstar or Oakfur got another painful strike in when they made the attempt, then they tried just blocking.

When they reached the point where they were only blocking, not fighting, Darkstar lunged forward and bit into the she-cat's throat. She released a strangled yowl before collapsing. Darkstar swirled to join Oakfur in facing against the brown tom, barely aware of the blood staining his muzzle as he bared his fangs at the intruder. The tom stared at Darkstar, looked at Oakfur, returned his gaze to Darkstar, and fled.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen**

"Coward." Darkstar spat at the retreating form. Then he turned to face Oakfur. "Let's see if anyone needs help." Oakfur nodded, respect showing through his eyes, and they went back around to the front of the camp.

It seemed to Darkstar that without him and Oakfur, there was approximately one enemy for each ally. He was pretty much okay with that until a yellow-furred tomcat knocked Nightshade aside and she hit her head against the camp. Nightshade didn't get back up and the tom left her to join Sharpstar in attacking Moonleap.

"Help Moonleap!" Darkstar ordered Oakfur before bounding away to check on Nightshade.

Darkstar carefully grabbed Nightshade's scruff and dragged her away from the fight. When they were safely hidden underneath a huckleberry bush, Darkstar looked over her carefully. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that she was breathing and he couldn't find any traces of blood on her scalp but he didn't feel comfortable leaving her here, alone and defenseless.

"Rabbitpaw." Darkstar muttered. He scraped several dead leaves onto Nightshade's pelt and slipped out from underneath the bush. Looking around, he was glad to see that there weren't any Dark Forest warriors close enough to see him leaving Nightshade's hiding place.

Darkstar ran, his body held low, to the back of the camp and walked up the slope until he reached the hole in the top. He slid through, pushing off the edge to land in front of the pool instead of in it and walked up beside Rabbitpaw.

The young tabby tom jumped twice his height into the air and looked ready to bolt before he recognized Darkstar.

"What are you doing in here? Do we need help?" Rabbitpaw asked, his voice low as he shot a cautious look back toward the fighting.

"As a whole, no. But Nightshade's been knocked unconscious and I'd feel better if there was someone watching over her." Darkstar explained. Rabbitpaw nodded in understanding and followed Darkstar back through the escape hole.

They raced through the undergrowth back to Nightshade's huckleberry bush but another cat was already there.

Darkstar lengthened his stride, pulling ahead of Rabbitpaw, and pounced onto the mostly black she-cat who was sniffing at the base of the bush. He dug his claws around the white stripe she had down her back and leaned toward her throat. She reared backward, letting herself fall on top of him. Darkstar felt a prick of annoyance as his breath was once again knocked from him and rolled over onto his feet. The she-cat had already gained her paws and was bristling at him.

"I'll give you one chance to run." Darkstar offered, baring his teeth a little more than necessary for the lopsided smile he gave her. Her lip curled at his cockiness and she lunged at him. Darkstar launched himself forward, slipping underneath her, and reared abruptly. She tried to curl up from the sudden pressure on her belly which messed up her landing. The she-cat stumbled and tried to turn around to face Darkstar. Before she could regain her paws, Darkstar leaped onto her side, effectively pinning her, and bit her shoulder. When she screamed, Darkstar released her and she limped away.

Darkstar was about to turn around to check on Rabbitpaw and Nightshade when too many paws landed on his shoulders. After Darkstar was trapped, the paws readjusted themselves until there were two on each side. Then they began digging, scratching large clumps of fur from his flanks. Darkstar yowled in pain and anger at them and attempted to escape. Finally, the paws keeping him trapped loosened a bit and Darkstar ran.

Darkstar heard two cats behind him, chasing. Irritated at being chased out of his own territory and concerned for his clanmates, Darkstar tried to turn a wide arc around the intruders but a tortoiseshell and a large brown she-cat appeared in front of him with bared fangs when he began to swerve. Darkstar turned the other way and attempted returning to camp from that side but a small gray and white she-cat and a white tom with ginger speckles stopped him again.

'They're trying to force me to go somewhere.' Darkstar realized. Darkstar reared suddenly and turned back the way he came. When he met the speckled tom and the large brown she-cat, Darkstar jumped high like Moonleap had taught him and landed safely on the other side. He raced back towards camp and heard their steps as they tried chasing him again.

'Let the race begin.' Darkstar thought as he stretched his legs as far as he could on each stride. Soon he and the brown she-cat had left the other three behind but she was staying stubbornly close. Darkstar veered suddenly to the left, trying to lose her but she followed nimbly.

"You're fast." Darkstar observed, somewhat impressed.

"You're sweet." She responded, amused. She had a rather deep voice. "And you're young. Neither of which are traits I hold in high regard." She began pulling ahead and Darkstar thwarted her with another burst of speed. Together, they wove through the forest until Darkstar found the camp again. It was empty.

All the cats who had been fighting there before were now gone. Darkstar dove into the camp itself as the brown she-cat broke through the undergrowth and into the clearing out front. She allowed herself a short pause before walking into Fireclan's camp.

"Where are they?" Darkstar growled, bristled to twice his normal size.

"I expect by now, they're already waiting on the Island for the rest of the camps to be defeated and for the last few cowards driven out of their hiding places." She informed him, her voice deeper than normal with contempt for the 'cowards'. "You can wait with your clanmates there for us to win this war, or you can lose a life and be dragged there anyway."

"You think you could kill me?" Darkstar asked.

"I know that we can." She nodded behind him and when Darkstar looked, he saw that the gray and white she-cat and the tortoiseshell had slipped through the hole without him hearing. He spun to face the brown she-cat again and saw that the speckled tom had joined her.

"Well, given your generous options," Darkstar began sarcastically, though he finished in earnest. "I guess I'll go check on my clanmates." The brown she-cat almost began a smile before turning and leading the rest of them back out.

The speckled white tom moved to Darkstar's right and the tortoiseshell wandered to his left as soon as they left the camp. The brown she-cat stayed in the lead and the small gray cat walked behind. The five of them traveled in silence all the way until they reached the fallen tree to the Island. Brown-fur leapt up first, followed by Speckles. Darkstar joined them next after the tortoiseshell shoved him and the other two climbed onto the tree last.

The Dark Forest cats brought Darkstar to the center of the Island where many other cats were already waiting. It was easy to tell the Dark Forest cats from the clan cats. All the clan cats were huddled in the center of the clearing while the Dark Forest cats wandered around them.

As Darkstar walked through the crowd of Dark Forest cats to join his clanmates, his guard separated and left to talk to their allies. When he reached the clan cats, Silverstar pressed her muzzle against his shoulder in a scared sort of greeting and Shadowlion gave him a bleak smile. Darkstar rested his nose on the back of Silverstar's neck for a moment in place of the hug he once would have given her, and summoned Shadowlion to sit next to him.

"How is everyone?" He asked them.

"Some of our friends aren't here." Shadowlion answered. "I don't know if they escaped the Dark Forest cats or were killed."

"Shiningheart's dead." Silverstar said with a hint of a sob in her voice. Darkstar turned his gaze away, not sure how to react to the death of his friend. Shiningheart had been the daughter of Frostpelt's friend of twenty-six years. Darkstar had known Shiningheart and her family since he was young.

The three of them sat in silence for a long moment before Shadowlion spoke again.

"Of the warriors that are here, almost everyone bears injuries to some degree. I heard that Snaketail convinced one of the Dark Forest cats to let her and the other medicine cats return to their camps with supplies but they could only go with a Dark Forest guard."

"Regrettably, that does make sense." Darkstar wanted to ask about Brighttalon, Rosethorn, and the kits but if they weren't here, he didn't want to bring attention to their absence. "Which camps have been brought here?"

"Ours, Winterclan's, Windclan's, and Riverclan's. Though I don't think it'll be long before Thunderclan and Shadowclan join us." Shadowlion answered. "A patrol of Dark Forest cats left to help out their allies in those camps just before you came in."

"I wonder what they're planning." Silverstar thought out loud.

"I don't know." Shadowlion responded.

"They want control of the clans." Ratscar answered them. He and Rosepetal had been sitting nearby with Rushtail and Starlingwing. "They want to tear the old warrior code down and replace it with a new one of their own design. I'm sorry for attacking you, Darkstar. I was scared and I didn't know who to fight."

"Don't worry about it. Do we have a clue as to their new code ideas?"

"Nothing specific but I expect there will be a lot more vicious fights and less tolerance towards any perceived rule-breaking." Rosepetal answered.

"That does sound like what they would do." Shadowlion agreed. "You should go see your deputy." She put a mild emphasis on 'deputy'.

"What? Oh, alright." Darkstar let Shadowlion lead him through the other clan cats until they reached Sandpelt and Rabbitpaw. Darkstar gave Shadowlion a questioning look and she responded with a pointed one. 'Brighttalon must still be in hiding with Rosethorn and the kits.'

"Glad to see that Fireclan's deputy is as safe as any of us." Darkstar said. Shadowlion allowed a quiet sigh, glad that he understood. "Have you already spoken with him?"

"Yeah I did." She replied. "He said that he understood."

"Thanks."

The arrival of a large group of Shadowclan cats disrupted the crowd as cats shuffled around to make room. Because of all the movement, Darkstar didn't notice Dustpaw until he spoke.

"The other leaders are gathering at the base of the oak tree. They want to talk in the place they're least likely to be overhead." Darkstar nodded and made his way to the tree. Silverstar, Mistystar, and Onestar were already there and Blackstar arrived at the same time as Darkstar.

"Any ideas for a plan?" Blackstar growled as he sat down with them.

"I don't know what we can do." Onestar said.

"Nothing yet." Mistystar answered Blackstar, ignoring Onestar's pessimism.

"Kill 'em all?" Darkstar asked.

"Sounds good." Blackstar agreed, twitching his whiskers. "So _how_ will we kill them all?"

"We already lost to them once! How many more cats do we want to lose?" Silverstar argued.

There was a heavy silence as Darkstar and the other leaders thought about Silverstar's outburst. Darkstar was furious that she'd even imply that any one wanted to lose any of their clanmates.

"So we prepare our clanmates first." Mistystar stated. "The Dark Forest have been getting ready for this battle for generations. This time we fight on our own terms."

"Look out." The Riverclan deputy warned as he stepped forward.

"Dark Forest cats approaching." Rowanclaw added, keeping his eyes on the approaching patrol. Darkstar looked to see Wildear, Snowlion, Scorchfur, Thornclaw, Breezepelt, and Icewing walking closer with six Dark Forest warriors.

"Out of the way." Brokenstar snarled. "Make room for your new leaders."

Darkstar bristled his pelt as he retreated a couple steps and felt the other leaders react similarly. The living cats that were with Wildear climbed up into the oak tree while their Dark Forest companions waited at the base.

Breezepelt stood on a branch above the others as they sat on a separate limb.

"Anyone who is willing to swear loyalty to the leaders chosen by the Dark Forest may stay in this territory. Those who refuse have the choice of leaving or dying." Breezepelt offered to the assembled cats.

Darkstar noticed Silverstar looking around. Mistystar flattened her ears and Blackstar bristled while Onestar unsheathed his claws and crouched. Walking carefully, Darkstar slipped between Silverstar and Mistystar and leaned forward so they could both hear his hushed words.

"If we agreed to this now then we can survive to fight another day."

The two she-cats glanced at each other around him and exchanged a nod.

"I offer my loyalty to the new leaders." Darkstar called out, though the words burned in his mouth. Mistystar used his raised voice to whisper to Blackstar.

"I do too." Silverstar agreed as Blackstar muttered to Onestar.

"As do I." Mistystar added.

"Me too." Blackstar growled, his voice reluctant.

"I also offer loyalty." Onestar took a step forward to say.

"I'll never promise loyalty to traitors and cowards!" A tomcat yowled. Darkstar craned his neck to see who it was but Silverstar unintentionally blocked his view.

"Very well, Cloudtail." Breezepelt sneered. "You're free to leave, _if_ you can make it."

The crowd shifted around as Cloudtail tried to escape and was caught.

"No!" Brightheart cried out. "_Cloudtail!_" Thornclaw turned his head aside, trying to avoid acknowledging his sister's despair as Breezepelt curled his lip at her.

"Anyone else want to try fighting?" Breezepelt asked. There was a moment of heavy silence before Breezepelt spoke again. "Good." He said smugly before joining the other Dark Forest-chosen clan leaders.

"He must have been there the whole time." Silverstar whispered in Darkstar's ear. Darkstar looked back up at the tree to see who she was talking about and noticed a pair of eyes gleaming above the branch Breezepelt had just left. "He could have heard us talking." Darkstar nodded in understanding before the cat who bore those eyes began to speak.

"Everyone step back." A hoarse tom voice ordered. "Leave a clear space around the tree."

Darkstar turned and joined the rest of the cats in backing off a couple foxlengths.

"Former clan leaders, step forward."

Darkstar touched Silverstar's shoulder lightly with his tailtip as he walked forward next to her. Mistystar kept her head held high and her tail low to the ground as she walked forward with expressionless eyes. Blackstar bristled and unsheathed his claws but also took a couple steps toward the tree. Onestar flattened his ears to his skull and kept his tail close to his hind legs. Once the older leaders were all assembled, the new clan leaders leaped to the ground and took up positions in front of them. Thornclaw sat next to the tree with the group of Dark Forest cats already there.

Darkstar looked into Wildear's eyes, wondering how his sister got to be so trusted in the Dark Forest that they chose her to be leader. Wildear met his gaze and gave a very human gesture that no natural-born cat would think twice of; she winked. 'She planned for this.' Darkflame realized but the invisible cat spoke again before he could give it any more thought.

"No regular warrior should have more lives than any of their clanmates."

Icewing lifted her tail to interrupt the Dark Forest cat and stood to face him.

"Maggottail, wouldn't it make sense to keep our clans as strong as possible? Having clanmates with extra lives seems like a good thing; they can fight with less fear of death."

Maggottail's eyes glared in fury but Brokenstar joined Icewing to further stall Maggottail.

"She has a point, Maggottail. However, the former leaders will use their warrior names and be given the same duties as any other warrior."

"Very well." Maggottail reluctantly conceded. "From this day forward, Blackstar will be known as Blackfoot. Mistystar will be referred to as Mistyfoot. Onestar will be called Onewhisker. Silverstar will be Silverfire. And Darkstar will be known as Darkflame. If the five of you would like to step forward."

Darkflame was confused for a moment when he thought Maggottail was addressing him but the cats at the base of the tree stepped forward.

"I welcome Scorchstar as the new leader of Shadowclan." Brokenstar announced, walking up to Scorchfur to touch Scorchfur's forehead with his nose.

"I welcome Wildstar as the new leader of Fireclan." Onestone continued, repeating the gesture on Wildear. This was repeated for each leader. A creamy-white she-cat with brown tabby markings welcomed Breezestar, a sandy brown tabby she-cat welcomed Snowstar, Beechseed welcomed Thornstar, and Sorrelear welcomed Icestar.

"Now, lead your clans home." Maggottail instructed. "And know that the Dark Forest is watching."

Breezestar walked into the crowd first, his tail lifted to assemble his clanmates around him. The Windclanners followed slowly, the most able cats helping the most injured. Kestrelflight wandered among them, making sure that each cat was taken care of. Thornstar brought Thunderclan to the fallen log and began crossing when Tallpoppy, the last Windclan cat, was halfway across.

Icestar led her clanmates across the channel while Thunderclan was on the bridge. Willowshine and Graymist walked Mothwing across, Minnowtail leaned on Pebblefoot, Mintfur helped Mossyfoot, and Dapplenose and Hollowflight carried Robinwing.

Snowstar called to Winterclan next, following close at Thunderclan's heels. Frostpelt carried Pebblefur on her back while Eaglewing kept up a close eye so the vixen didn't fall off. Tornadoclaw held Lavenderpaw by her scruff while Meadowpaw let her sister rest on her back. Silverfire and Snaketail crossed at the back of the group.

It wasn't until Shadowclan reached the far side of the log that Wildstar led Fireclan off the Island. Looking out for his clanmates, Darkflame was glad to see Badgerswipe and Crimsonclaw carrying Nightshade while Sandpelt supported Rabbitpaw. After seeing them cross safely, Darkflame tagged on to the end of the line and crossed behind Shadowlion.

"Are you okay?" Darkflame asked, twitching his whiskers at her distended belly.

"We'll be fine." Shadowlion answered. "I'm more tired out by the fight than I like but I suppose that's to be expected."

Darkflame purred in sympathy and pressed his pelt against hers. She laid her muzzle against his shoulder for a moment in response.

When they arrived at their camp, Wildstar jumped up to the spot where Darkflame had always called meetings.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather in front of the camp for a clan meeting."

After they all settled down in front of her, Wildstar continued

"Onestone has instructed me to properly punish each cat in Fireclan that betrayed the Dark Forest during the battle and praise the ones who fought alongside us. So, each cat who received training before the battle, stand up."

Crimsonclaw stood first, chin raised defiantly and claws unsheathed. Dustpaw also bristled but he seemed more nervous. Duskmist seemed very calm in comparison as he joined them.

"Did any of you fight on our side?" Wildstar asked, not really expecting the traitors to be honest about it. Duskmist walked forward to stand next to the log and address his clanmates.

"I remained as loyal to my Dark Forest clanmates as I ever was."

"Yes." Wildstar agreed. "I fought alongside you against some Riverclan cats. Crimsonclaw?"

"I fought for my living clanmates. And would do so again!" Crimsonclaw said boldly. Wildstar closed her eyes for a moment in dismay at his blatant challenge to the cats of the Dark Forest.

"And you, Dustpaw?"

"I- I fought beside my clanmates." He stated, standing beside Crimsonclaw.

"Okay." Wildstar acknowledged. "Darkflame, will you bring my kits back home?" Darkflame looked over his clanmates. He was reluctant to leave his clanmates but Darkflame knew he'd feel better with Brighttalon back.

"I'll be back as soon as I can." Darkflame promised before walking into the undergrowth. He tried finding Brighttalon or Rosethorn's scent to follow but any trace of it was overpowered by the stench of blood and torn fur. Instead he used his eyes to search for the dip in the ground that would show where a tunnel began.

After looking for a while, Darkflame found one underneath a holly bush. Searching, Darkflame was just able to find Rosethorn's scent underneath that of crushed ferns. Darkflame began to crawl in but an unfamiliar growl stopped him.

"Stay out of there." A she-cat warned.

"It's okay." Brighttalon said quickly, stepping forward out of the tunnel. "He's a friend." Rosethorn's eyes peered out of the darkness as Brighttalon and a black-furred she-cat walked out into the moonlight. "Panther, this is Darkstar. We've been friends for a long time. Darkstar, Panther lived with me when I was human. She sought us out after we changed."

"How did the fight go?" Rosethorn asked, carrying the kits out one at a time.

"They won this battle. Wildear's in charge now but I suspect she planned something. She goes by Wildstar and I'm called Darkflame. Due to the change, and the fact that Fireclan's previous deputy died, I think Wildstar needs a new one. Tragic really."

"I died?" Brighttalon asked.

"Yep." Darkflame replied cheerfully. "Both of you. Dark Forest cats managed to surprise you, Rosethorn, and in a rage, Brighttalon attacked a group of ten. Brought tears to my eyes when I made it up." Brighttalon had to suppress a laugh.

"So what do you suggest we do, now that we're dead?"

"Enjoy life….er death…that is…. Well you get what I mean. It never hurts to have an Ace in the Hole, right?"

"Okay. Panther's been hiding out in the tunnels for a while. She knows where it's safe. We'll be hiding out here."

"Sounds good. Be cautious of the ….Wait, I like the Dark…..and the forest. Why do they get such a cool name?"

"We'll be careful." Rosethorn promised.

"Good." Darkflame said, losing his joking manner. "I'll spread the news of your deaths. Remember, Fireclan is essentially part of the Dark Forest now. I'll find out who is loyal to me and our code, but don't be seen by any until you know they're with us."

"Okay. Be sure to keep us up to speed." Brighttalon requested.

"Of course." Darkflame agreed. "I should probably get the kits back before anyone wonders where I am." Rosethorn nodded and nuzzled each of the kits goodbye before letting Darkflame carry them away.

To bring them back to camp, Darkflame had to carry one a short ways, set it down, and return for the next. With six kits to transport, it took a long time for Darkflame to return to camp but when he did get there Shadowlion, Wildstar, Duskmist, Badgerswipe, and Dustpaw were waiting outside to help. The rest of the clan were already curled up in their nests.

Each of the waiting cats picked up one of the kits and Darkflame grabbed Sorrelkit. They carried Wildstar's litter to her usual nest near the pool.

"Where are Brighttalon and Rosethorn?" Wildstar asked, settling down and wrapping her tail around the kittens. Darkflame blinked and looked aside, trying to hide his expression and look appropriately upset.

"They're dead." He muttered. "Looks like someone found their hiding place. One of them tucked the kits into a side tunnel off the main one and used crushed ferns to hide their scents. Rosethorn was left just outside the tunnel and Brighttalon lay nearby. I-" Darkflame made a show of swallowing heavily. "I hid them deeper in the tunnel so that I could get the kits out without them seeing."

"I'm sorry." Wildstar sympathized, put off by the news of Darkflame's best friend's death and not sure what to say.

"I'm going to sleep." Darkflame said, walking away with his head held low.

(A/N. Loathe though I am to do so, I don't know how to fit the back story into the main story so I'm going to do something that no proper author can or should ever do and just tell you what happened. Midnight was overpowered earlier in the battle than she was in the original book so she couldn't get to Shadowclan to save Lionblaze. Without all of the Four, the Ancients couldn't come to help.)


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter Fourteen**

Darkflame was shaken awake the next day a little before sunhigh by Crimsonclaw. Darkflame remembered after he lifted his head that he was supposed to be in mourning.

"What?" Darkflame growled.

"Nightshade told me to wake you. Shadowlion's giving birth." Darkflame jumped up before Crimsonclaw finished and raced to the back of the log. Nightshade was licking a small, black kit clean while Shadowlion cleaned a dark brown tabby. Two other kits were already suckling at Shadowlion's belly.

"How are they?" Darkflame asked quietly, looking down at his kits.

"They're all healthy and strong." Nightshade reported, setting the black kit next to her siblings.

"Good to see that you're better." Darkflame commented to the medicine cat.

"Yeah, I'll have a bruise for a while but I just needed to sleep off the unconsciousness. How are you doing?" Nightshade added sympathetically. "Duskmist told me about Brighttalon and Rosethorn."

"I don't really want to talk about it." Darkflame muttered. It was harder than he expected to pretend to be upset over the death of someone who hadn't actually died.

"Of course." Nightshade accepted, backing off. "I'll leave you two alone." She turned and walked back to her area, flicking her tail to dismiss Crimsonclaw.

"What names should we give them?" Darkflame asked Shadowlion. For a moment she looked like she wanted to talk about Brighttalon but then she looked down at the kits to answer Darkflame's question.

"I thought we could both choose two names. I picked one of mine but I'm still thinking about the other."

"Which one do you have?"

"Flightkit, for the brown tabby."

"Alright. I like Rainkit for the speckled she-kit. And the long-furred one looks like you. Would you object to calling her Shadowkit?"

"Nah, I don't mind." Shadowlion purred. "I think I've decided on Swiftkit for the patched kit."

"Sounds good." Darkflame purred in response. Darkflame heard Shadowlion release a very quiet exhalation and knew that she thought she'd distracted him from sorrow.

"Darkflame?" Wildstar asked.

"Yeah?"

"Would you patrol the Thunderclan border? I don't trust Thornstar or Beechseed, his supervisor."

"Who should I bring?"

"Crimsonclaw. We can't really afford to send anyone else with you two. Nightshade needs to stay here with Rabbitpaw, Shadowlion and I need to take care of our kits, Sandpelt and Badgerswipe are going to the Shadowclan border, and Duskmist and Dustpaw are out hunting."

"Can't the dead cats help us?" Darkflame complained. Wildstar's whiskers twitched in amusement.

"I'll see if there're any volunteers tonight." She offered.

"See ya later." Darkflame said, licking the top of Shadowlion's head before going to collect Crimsonclaw.

Darkflame and Crimsonclaw walked together toward the border, the soft newleaf sunlight warm on their pelts.

"So," Crimsonclaw began. "Where are Brighttalon and Rosethorn?"

"What do you mean?" Darkflame asked expressionlessly. "I already said where they were."

"Except that their not there." Crimsonclaw responded. "I couldn't sleep after the battle so I checked out the area around camp. I found a dark-furred intruder so I chased her down. She led me on a circuitous route to a tunnel. I followed her a little ways in. I didn't want to go too far because I didn't know the territory but I did go deep enough to catch Rosethorn's scent. It was very fresh, too fresh for her to have died during the battle."

"I told them to hide. It's better if the Dark Forest don't know who or where all our allies are. Can I trust you not to tell anyone that they're still alive?"

"Yeah." Crimsonclaw agreed with uncharacteristic seriousness. Then continued in a growl. "I want to do whatever I can to end them- the Dark Forest's reign."

Darkflame glanced at the other cat in mild surprise. "Well, I plan on finding a way to do that."

"Good." Crimsonclaw said coldly. Then they were at the Thunderclan border and both felt the impulse to keep quiet in case Thunderclan warriors were near.

The silence remained, broken only by birdsong and the wind, until Darkflame and Crimsonclaw were nearing the twoleg campground. Just before they entered the clearing, a quiet hiss sounded from across the border. Darkflame turned to look and Crimsonclaw bristled slightly, unsure whether or not to expect a fight.

"Who's there?" Darkflame called.

"Not so loud!" A hushed voice begged. A dark brown she-cat poked her head out of a bush on the Thunderclan side of the border. Jayfeather stepped out next, turning his head toward the she-cat as though in warning.

"Thorncl-star has exiled us from camp." Jayfeather admitted. "We need somewhere to hide."

"He said that there was no room in Thunderclan for cats who couldn't hunt or fight." The she-cat added bitterly.

"Why can't you?" Crimsonclaw asked the she-cat curiously. Darkflame looked over her but he also couldn't see anything wrong. She shot a questioning glance at Jayfeather and the blind tom nodded.

"Go ahead, Briarlight." He murmured. "They don't seem hostile." She blinked in acceptance of his words and pulled herself the rest of the way out. From just behind her shoulders, her back sloped gently downward and her hind legs dragged behind her.

"My spine was broken." She muttered. "Back when I was an apprentice."

"So, what are you good at?" Darkflame asked. He realized after he said it that it could sound worse than he meant. Briarlight blinked at Darkflame a couple times before Jayfeather cut in to speak.

"She's spent a lot of time in my den. She knows all the basic remedies and a couple more complex ones. Her forelegs are plenty strong enough for her to travel, it just takes her longer. She carried herself here from camp without my –"

"Yes, sorry. I realize that seemed insensitive, I don't always think first. I asked so we could have an excuse for you to join Fire without the supervisor caring too much."

"Join Fire?" Jayfeather repeated. He turned towards Briarlight and she looked at his eyes.

"Temporarily, of course." Darkflame clarified. "Just until we get the Dark Forest settled."

"Thank you." Jayfeather said after a hesitation. "Will your leader object?"

"Nah, Wildstar won't turn you out. Come on, let's go to camp."

The four of them traversed carefully through the woods, returning to a nearly empty camp.

"I'm back." Darkflame announced. "And I brought extras."

"Mrr?" Wildstar asked, looking up. "Who're they?"

"Jayfeather," Darkflame responded, waving his tail at the tabby. "And, was it Briarlight?" He asked the brown cat.

"Yeah." She agreed. "Is this your leader?"

"Yeah, Wildstar was given the position of leader." Darkflame answered.

"Aren't they Thunderclan?" Wildstar asked.

"Doesn't look like it." Darkflame said in response.

"Hey Jayfeather," Nightshade said in surprise as she walked into camp. "What're you doing here? Is there trouble in Thunderclan?"

"N- Sort of." Jayfeather admitted. "Thornstar sent us away. Darkflame offered us sanctuary."

"How dare he!?" Nightshade objected. "Who does he expect to keep Thunderclan healthy?"

"He gave Leafpool the position. He said there was no reason for her not to be with the Dark Forest in charge."

"But why not you?"

"I'm blind." Jayfeather growled. "He said he doesn't want anyone who is incapable of hunting or fighting."

"Pfft- Thornstar's an idiot." Nightshade scoffed. "You mind helping me out while you're here?"

"I'd like that. Thank you." Jayfeather accepted. "Though you'll have to show me the territory."

"I can do that." Nightshade agreed.

"What about me?" Briarlight asked. "What can I do?"

"How strong are your front legs?" Wildstar asked thoughtfully. "You were able to get here."

"My forelegs are as strong as any other warriors but my hind legs don't work at all." Briarlight answered.

"They're stronger." Jayfeather disagreed. "Her front legs are stronger than most warriors'."

"You can go out on patrols, but hide if there's a fight." Wildstar instructed. "You can help out the medicine cats when they need it and watch over the kits when they're older. If you think of anything else, go ahead and talk to me."

"Thank you." Briarlight said emphatically. "I'll do the best I can."

"Good." Wildstar said before looking at Darkflame and Crimsonclaw. "Do you two want to join Duskmist and Dustpaw in hunting or stick around camp for a while?"

"I'll stay here for a while." Crimsonclaw decided while Nightshade and Jayfeather talked quietly.

"Yeah, I think I will too." Darkflame agreed. "I'll go out hunting when one of the other patrols gets back."

"'Kay." Wildstar acknowledged, settling more comfortably in her nest.


End file.
